
Class jj^_i~L2<. 
Book 



VENICE 



GRANT ALLEN'S 
HISTORICAL GUIDES 



PARIS. By Grant Allen. 
FLORENCE. By Grant A len. 
CLASSICAL ROME. By A. Stuart Jokes 

CHRISTIAN ROME. By J. W. and A. M. 

Ckuickshank. 

VENICE. By Grant Allen. 

THE CITIES OF BELGIUM. By Grant Allen. 

THE CITIES OF NORTHERN ITALY. By 

G. C. Williamson, Litt.D. 
THE UMBRIAN TOWNS. By J. W. and A. M. 

Cruickshank. 

SMALLER TUSCAN TOWNS. By J. W. and 

A. M. Cruickshank. 



Fcap. 8vo. Cloih. Round corners. 



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GRANT ALLEN'S HISTORICAL GUIDES 

VENICE 



WITH THIRTY-TWO REPRODUCTIONS FROM 
PHOTOGRAPHS 




NEW YORK 
HENRY HOLT AND COMPANY 
LONDON : GRANT RICHARDS LTD. 



•$c* 






First printed September 1898 
Reprinted . . . June 1901 



Reprinted 
Reprinted 
Reprinted 
Reprinted 
Reprinted 



July 1902 

Aug. 1906 

Dec. 1907 

Jan. 1909 

Feb. 1912 



/2_ 



PRINTED BY WILLIAM BRENDON AND SON, LTD. 
PLYMOUTH, ENGLAND 



INTRODUCTION 

THE object and plan of these Historical Handbooks is 
somewhat different from that of any other guides at 
present before the public. They do not compete or clash 
with such existing works ; they are rather intended to 
supplement than to supplant them. My purpose is not to 
direct the stranger through the streets and squares of an 
unknown town towards the buildings or sights which he 
may desire to visit ; still less is it my design to give him 
practical information about hotels, cab fares, omnibuses 
tramways, and other everyday material conveniences. For 
such details the traveller must still have recourse to the 
trusty pages of his Baedeker, his Joanne, or his Murray 
I desire rather to supply the tourist who wishes to use his 
travel as a means of culture with such historical and anti- 
quarian information as will enable him to understand, and 
therefore to enjoy, the architecture, sculpture, painting, and 
minor arts of the towns he visits. In one word, it is my 
object to give the reader in a very compendious form the 
result of all those inquiries which have naturally suggested 
themselves to my own mind during thirty-five years of 
foreign travel, the solution of which has cost myself a good 
deal of research, thought, and labour, beyond the facts 
which I could find in the ordinary handbooks. 

For several years past I have devoted myself to collecting 
and arranging material for a set of books to embody the 
idea I had thus entertained. I earnestly hope they may 
meet a want on the part of tourists, especially Americans, 



vi INTRODUCTION 

who, so far as my experience goes, usually come to Europe 
with an honest and reverent desire to learn from the Old 
World whatever of value it has to teach them, and who are 
prepared to take an amount of pains in turning their trip to 
good account, which is both rare and praiseworthy. For 
such readers I shall call attention at times to other sources 
of information. 

These guide-books will deal more particularly with the 
Great Towns where objects of art and antiquity are 
numerous. In every one of them, the general plan 
pursued will be somewhat as follows. First will come 
the inquiry why a town ever gathered together at all at 
that particular spot— what induced the aggregation of 
human beings rather there than elsewhere. Next, we shall 
consider why that town grew to social or political import- 
ance and what were the stages by which it assumed its 
present shape. Thirdly, we shall ask why it gave rise to 
that higher form of handicraft which we know as Art, and 
towards what particular arts it especially gravitated. After 
that, we shall take in detail the various strata of its growth 
or development, examining the buildings and works of art 
which they contain in historical order, and, as far as 
possible, tracing the causes which led to their evolution. 
In particular, we shall lay stress upon the origin and 
meaning of each structure as an organic whole, and upon 
the allusions or symbols which its fabric embodies. 

A single instance will show the method upon which I 
intend to proceed better than any amount of general de- 
scription. A church, as a rule, is built over the body or 
relics of a particular saint, in whose special honour it was 
originally erected. That saint was usually one of great local 
importance at the moment of its erection, or was peculiarly 
implored against plague, foreign enemies, or some other 
pressing and dreaded misfortune. In dealing with such a 
church, then, I endeavour to show what were the circum- 



INTR OD UCTION vh 

stances which led to its erection, and what memorials of 
these circumstances it still retains. In other cases it may 
derive its origin from some special monastic body — Bene- 
dictine, Dominican, Franciscan— and may therefore be full 
of the peculiar symbolism and historical allusion of the 
order who founded it. Wherever I have to deal with such 
a church, I try as far as possible to exhibit the effect which 
its origin had upon its architecture and decoration ; to trace 
the image of the patron saint in sculpture or stained glass 
throughout the fabric ; and to set forth the connection of 
the whole design with time and place, with order and 
purpose. In short, instead of looking upon monuments of 
the sort mainly as the product of this or that architect, I 
look upon them rather as material embodiments of the 
spirit of the age — crystallisations, as it were, in stone and 
bronze, in form and colour, of great popular enthusiasms. 

By thus concentrating attention on what is essential and 
important in a town, I hope to give in a comparatively short 
space, though with inevitable conciseness, a fuller account 
than is usually given of the chief architectural and monu- 
mental works of the principal art-cities. In dealing with 
Paris, for example, I shall have little to say about such 
modern constructions as the Champs Elysees or the Eiffel 
Tower ; still less, of course, about the Morgue, the Cata- 
combs, the waxworks of the Musee Grevin, and the cele- 
brated Excursion in the Paris Sewers. The space thus 
saved from vulgar wonders I shall hope to devote to fuller 
explanation of Notre-Dame and the Sainte Chapelle, of the 
mediaeval carvings or tapestries of Cluny, and of the pictures 
or sculptures in the galleries of the Louvre. Similarly in 
Florence, whatever I save from description of the Cascine 
and even of the beautiful Viale dei Colli (where explanation 
is needless and word-painting superfluous), I shall give up 
to the Bargello, the Uffizi, and the Pitti Palace. The 
passing life of the moment does not enter into my plan ; 



viii INTRODUCTION 

I regard each town I endeavour to illustrate mainly as a 

museum of its own history. 

For this reason, too, I shall devote most attention in 
every case to what is locally illustrative, and less to what 
is merely adventitious and foreign. In Paris, for instance, 
I shall have more to say about truly Parisian art and 
history, as embodied in St. Denis, the He de la Cite, and 
the shrine of Ste. Genevieve, than about the Egyptian 
and Assyrian collections of the Louvre. In Florence, again, 
I shall deal rather with the Etruscan remains, with Giotto 
and Fra Angelico, with the Duomo and the Campanile, 
than with the admirable Memlincks and Rubenses of the 
Umzi and the Pitti, or with the beautiful Van der Goes of 
the Uffizi Gallery. In Bruges and Brussels, once more, I 
shall be especially Flemish ; in the Rhine towns, Rhenish ; 
in Venice, Venetian. I shall assign a due amount of space, 
indeed, to the foreign collections, but I shall call attention 
chiefly to those monuments or objects which are of entirely 
local and typical value. 

As regards the character of the information given, it will 
be mainly historical, antiquarian, and, above all, explanatory. 
I am not a connoisseur — an adept in the difficult modern 
science of distinguishing the handicraft of various masters, 
in painting or sculpture, by minute signs and delicate in- 
ferential processes. In such matters, I shall be well content 
to follow the lead of the most authoritative experts. Nor 
am I an art critic — a student versed in the technique of the 
studios and the dialect of the modelling-room. In such 
matters, again, I shall attempt little more than to accept 
the general opinion of the most discriminative judges. 
What I aim at rather is to expound the history and 
meaning of each work — to put the intelligent reader in 
such a position that he may judge for himself of the 
aesthetic beauty and success of the object before him. To 
recognise the fact that this is a Perseus and Andromeda, 



INTRODUCTION ix 

that a St. Barbara enthroned, the other an obscure episode 
in the legend of St. Philip, is not art criticism, but it is 
often an almost indispensable prelude to the formation of a 
right and sound judgment. We must know what the artist 
was trying to represent before we can feel sure what measure 
of success he has attained in his representation. 

For the general study of Christian art, alike in architec- 
ture, sculpture, and painting, no treatises are more useful 
for the tourist to carry with him for constant reference than 
Mrs. Jameson's Sacred and Legendary Art, and Legends of 
the Madonna (London, Longmans). For works of Italian 
art, both in Italy and elsewhere, Kugler's Italian Schools of 
Painting is an invaluable vade mecum. These books should 
be carried about by everybody everywhere. Other works of 
special and local importance will occasionally be noticed 
under each particular city, church, or museum. 

I cannot venture to hope that handbooks containing such 
a mass of facts as these will be wholly free from errors and 
misstatements, above all in early editions. I can only beg 
those who may detect any such to point them out, without 
unnecessary harshness, to the author, care of the publisher, 
and if possible to assign reasons for any dissentient 
opinion. 



CONTENTS 



Introduction 

How to Use these Guide-Books . 

I Origins of Venice .... 
II Byzantine Venice : St. Mark's 

III Gothic Venice: The Doge's Palace 

IV Renaissance Venice .... 

V The Churches — 

A The Salute. San Trovaso. San Sebastiano 
I Carmini. San Pantaleone 

B The Frari. S. Toma. San Rocco. Scuola 
di San Rocco ...... 

C San Salvatore. San Giovanni Crisostomo 
Santa Maria dei Miracoli 

D S. M. Formosa. San Giovanni e Paolo 
San Francesco della Vigna 

E S. Zaccaria. S. Giorgio degli Schiavoni 
S. Giorgio dei Greci. S. Giovanni in 
Bragora. Church of the Pieta 

F S. Giovanni Elemosinario. S. Cassiano 
S. M. Mater Domini 

G Madonna dell' Orto. Santa Caterina. S. M 
dei Gesuiti. S. Marciliano 

H S. Giorgio Maggiore. II Redentore 

I San Giobbe. S. Alvise 



PAGE 

v 



xii 


CONTENTS 


PAGE 


VI 


The Academy 


. . I6 9 


VII 


The Doge's Palace .... 


• 22 3 


VIII 


The Grand Canal .... 


• 245 


IX 


The Museo Civico .... 


. 262 


X 


Excursions 


. 269 


Appendix 


• • 283 


Index 


r 


. 291 



LIST OF ILLUSTRATIONS 



FETE ClIAMPETRE AT THE LOUVRE 
Photograph : Mansell. 



Frontispiece s 

TO FACE PAGE • 

Capital from Justinian's Church of S. Vitale 



Ravenna . 

Photograph: Alinari. 

Italo-Byzantine Capital from the Atrium, S. Marco 

Photograph: J. W. Cruickshank. 

Byzantine Relief of Madonna 

Photograph : J. W. Cruickshank. 

Italo-Byzantine Carving of a Symbolical Character 

Photograph : J. W. Cruickshank. 



Romanesque Figure of the "Labour 

Photograph : J. W. Cruickshank. 



Byzantine-Romanesque Carving, S. Marco 

Photograph : J. W. Cruickshank. 

Pan t el from S. Apollinare Nuova, Ravenna 

Photograph : Alinari. 



Panel from S. Marco 

Photograph : J. W. Cruickshank. 

View in the Choir, S. Vitale, Ravenna . 

Photograph : Alinari. 

View in the Choir and Transept of S. Marco 

Photograph : Anderson. 



Head of King Solomon. 

Photograph : J. W. Cruickshank. 

Madonna and Child, by Giorgione 

Photograph : Anderson. 



14 
14 



of December 22 / 



24 

28, 

28 / 

70. 

70 

84 

96/ 



ILL USTRA TIONS 



TO FACE 

The Bridal Couple, by Lorenzo Lotto 

Photograph : Anderson. 

"Dorothea," by Sebastiano del Piombo . 

Photograph : Hanfstaengl. 

From the Equestrian Statue of Gattamelkta at 
Padua, by Donatello 

Photograph : Anderson. 

Sinner Going Down to Hell, by Michael Angelo 

Photograph : Anderson. 



Portrait of Loredano (Doge 1501-21), by Bellini 

Photograph : Mansell. 



Portrait of Pope Paul III., by Titian 

Photograph : Anderson. 

Head of Christ in the Church of S. Rocco 

Photograph : Anderson. 

"La Zingarella," by Titian 

Angels from the Coronation of the Virgin 

Photograph : Brogi. 

Angels from the Assumption of the Virgin 

Photograph : Anderson. 



Adam and Eve, by Rubens . 

Photograph : Anderson. 

Madonna by Botticelli 

Photograph : Brogi. 

Detail from "The Concert," by Titian 

Photograph : Anderson. 

"Flora," painted in 1523 by Titian . 

Photograph : Anderson. 

Portrait of Imhoff, by Durer . 

Photograph : Anderson. 

St. Catherine, by Carlo Crivelli 

Photograph : Brogi. 

"DANAE," PAINTED IN 1554 BY TlTIAN . 
Photograph : Anderson. 



ILL USTRA TIONS xv 

TO FACE PAGE 

Madonna and Child in the Chapei, of the Arena 
at Padua, by Giovanni Pisano .... 272 / 

Photograph : Alinari. 

Italo-Byzantine Mosaic. Madonna and Child . 272^ 

Photograph : J. W. Cruickshank. 



HOW TO USE THESE GUIDE- 
BOOKS 

r I "HE portions of this book inte?ided to be read at 
■*■ leisure at home, before proceeding to explore each 
town or monument, are enclosed in brackets [thus]. The 
portion relating to each principal object should be 
quietly read and digested before a visit, and referred to 
again afterwards. The portion to be read on the spot ' 
is made as brief as possible, and is printed in large legible 
type, so as to be easily read in the dim light of churches, 
chapels, and galleries. The key-note words are printed 
in bold type, to catch the eye. Where objects are 
numbered, the numbers used are always those of the latest 
official catalogues. 

Baedeker's Guides are so printed that each principal 
portion can be detached entire from the volume. The 
traveller ivho uses Baedeker is advised to carry in his 
pocket one such portion, referring to the place he is then 
visiting, together tvith the plan of the town, while carrying 
this book in his hand. These Guides do not profess to 
supply practical information. 

Individual works of merit are distinguished by an 
asterisk (*) ; those of very exceptional interest and merit 
have two asterisks. Nothing is noticed in this book 
which does not seem to the writer worthy of attentio?i. 

See little at a time, and see it thoroughly. Never 
attempt to " do " any place or any monument. By 
following strictly the order in which" objects are noticed 
in this book, you will gain a conception of the historical 
evolution of the town which you cannot obtain if you 
go about looking at churches and palaces haphazard. 
The order is arranged, not quite chronologically, but on a 
definite plan, which greatly facilitates comprehension of 
the subject. 



I 

ORIGINS OF VENICE 

THE very name of Venezia or Venice by which we 
now know the city of the lagoons is in its origin 
the name, not of a town, but of a country. Upon the 
proper comprehension of this curious fact depends a proper 
comprehension of much that is essential in the early history 
of the city and of the Republic. 

The rich and fertile valley of the Po had for its com- 
mercial centre from a very remote period the town of 
Mediolanum or Milan. But its port for the time being, 
though often altered, lay always on the Adriatic. That sea 
derives its name, indeed, from the town of Hatria (later 
corrupted into Adria), which was the earliest centre of the 
Po valley traffic. Hatria and its sister town of Spina, how- 
ever, gave way in imperial Roman times to Padua, and 
again in the days of the lower empire to Aquileia, near 
Trieste, and to Altinum, on the mainland just opposite 
Torcello. Padua in particular was a very prosperous and 
populous town under the early emperors ; it gathered into 
itself the surplus wealth of the whole Po valley. 

The district between Verona and the sea, known to the 
Romans as Venetia, seems in the most ancient times of 
which we have any record to have been inhabited by an 
Etruscan population. Later, however, it was occupied by the 
Veneti, an Illyrian tribe, whose name still survives in that of 
Venice and in the district known as II Veneto. But much 
Etruscan blood must have remained in the land even after 
their conquest : and it is doubtless to this persistent Etrus- 
can element that the Venetians owe their marked artistic 
faculty. The country of the Veneti was assimilated and 



2 ORIGINS OF VENICE [i. 

Romanised (by nominal alliance with Rome) in the third 
century before Christ. Under the Romans, Venetia, and 
its capital Padua, grew extremely wealthy, and the trade of 
the Lombard plain (as we now call it), the ancient Gallia 
Cisalpina, was concentrated on this district. 

The Po and the other rivers of the sub-Alpine region bring 
down to the Adriatic a mass of silt, which forms fan-like 
deltas, and spreads on either side of the mouth in belts or 
bars (the Lidi), which enclose vast Lagoons of shallow 
water. These lagoons consist near the mainland of bask- 
ing mudbanks, more or less reclaimed, and intersected by 
natural or artificial canals ; further out towards the bars 
or Lidi, they deepen somewhat, but contain in places 
numerous low islands. During the long troubles of the 
barbaric irruptions, in the fourth, fifth, and subsequent cen- 
turies, the ports of the lagoons, better protected both by 
land and sea than those of the Po, began to rise into com- 
parative importance ; on the south, Ravenna, on the north, 
Altinum, acquired increased commercial value. The slow 
silting up of the older harbours, as well as the dangers of 
the political situation, brought about in part this alteration 
in mercantile conditions. 

When Attila and his Huns invaded Italy in 453, they 
destroyed Padua, and also Altinum ; and though we need 
not suppose that those cities thereupon ceased entirely to 
exist, yet it is at least certain that their commercial im- 
portance was ruined for the time being. The people of 
Altinum took refuge on one of the islands in the lagoon, 
and built Torcello, which may thus be regarded in a certain 
sense as the mother=city of Venice. Subsequent waves 
of conquest had like results. Later on, in 568, the Lom = 
bards, a German tribe, invaded Italy, and completed the 
ruin of Padua, Altinum, and Aquileia. The relics of the 
Romanised and Christian Veneti then fled to the islands, to 
which we may suppose a constant migration of fugitives had 
been taking place for more than a century. The Paduans, 
in particular, seem to have settled at Malamocco. The 
subjugated mainland became known as Lombardy, from its, 



I.] ORIGINS OF VENICE 3 

Germanic conquerors, and the free remnant of the Veneti, 
still bearing their old name, built new homes in- the flat 
islets of Rivo Alto, Malamocco, and Torcello, which were 
the most secure from attack in their shallow waters. This 
last fringe of their territory they still knew as Venetia or 
Venezia; the particular island, or group of islands, on 
which modern Venice now stands, bore simply at that time 
its original name of Rivo Alto or Rialto, that is to say, the 
Deep Channel. 

The Romanised semi-Etruscan Christian Republic of 
Venezia seems from the very first to have been governed by 
a Dux or Doge (that is to say, Duke), in normal subjection 
to the Eastern Emperor at Constantinople. The Goth and 
the Lombard, the Frank and the Hun, never ruled this last 
corner of the Roman world. The earliest of the Doges 
whose name has come down to us was Paulucius Anafestus, 
who is said to have died in 716, and whose seat of govern- 
ment seems to have been at Torcello. Later, the Doge 
of the Venetians apparently resided at Malamocco, a town 
which no longer exists, having been destroyed by sub- 
mergence, though part of the bank of the Lidi opposite still 
retains its name. Isolated in their island fastnesses, the 
Venetians, as we may now begin to call them, grew rich and 
powerful at a time when the rest of Western Europe was 
sinking lower and lower in barbarism ; they kept up their 
intercourse with the civilised Roman east in Constantinople, 
and also with Alexandria (the last then Mohammedanised), 
and they acted as intermediaries between the Lombard King- 
dom and the still Christian Levant. When Charlemagne in 
the eighth century conquered the Lombards and founded 
the renewed (Teutonic) Roman Empire of the West, the 
Venetians, not yet established in modern Venice, fled from 
Malamocco to Rivo Alto to escape his son, King Pepin r whom 
they soon repelled from the lagoons. About the same time 
they seem to have made themselves practically independent 
of the eastern empire, without becoming a part of the western 
and essentially German one of the Carlovingians. Not long 
after, Malamocco was deserted, partly, no doubt, owing to 



4 ORIGINS OF VENICE [i. 

the destruction by Pepin, but partly also perhaps because 
it began to be threatened with submergence : and the 
Venetians then determined to fix their seat of government on 
Rivo Alto, or Rialto, the existing Venice. For a long time, 
the new town was still spoken of as Rialto, as indeed a 
part of it is by its own inhabitants to the present day ; but 
gradually the general name of Venezia, which belonged 
properly to the entire Republic, grew to be confined in 
usage to its capital, and most of us now know the city only 
as Venice. 

Pepin was driven off in 809. The Doge's palace was 
transferred to Rialto, and raised on the site of the existing 
building (according to tradition) in 819. Angelus Partici- 
pates was the first Doge to occupy it. From that period 
forward to the French Revolution, one palace after another 
housed the Duke of the Venetians on the same site. This 
was the real nucleus of the town of Venice, though the 
oldest part lay near the Rialto bridge. Malamocco did not 
entirely disappear, however, till 1107. The silting up of the 
harbour of Ravenna, the chief port of the Adriatic in late 
Roman times, and long an outlier of the Byzantine empire, 
contributed greatly, no doubt, to the rise of Venice : while 
the adoption of Rivo Alto with its deep navigable channel 
as the capital marks the gradual growth of an external 
commerce. 

The Republic which thus sprang up among the islands of 
the lagoons was at first confined to the little archipelago 
itself, though it still looked upon Aquileia and Altinum as 
its mother cities, and still acknowledged in ecclesiastical 
matters the supremacy of the Patriarch of Grado. After 
the repulse of King Pepin, however, the Republic began to 
recognise its own strength and the importance of its position, 
and embarked, slowly at first, on a career of commerce, and 
then of conquest. Its earliest acquisitions of territory were 
on the opposite Slavonic coast of Istria and Dalmatia; 
gradually its trade with the east led it, at the beginning of 
the Crusades, to acquire territory in the Levant and the 
•Greek Archipelago, This eastern extension was, mainly 



I.] ORIGINS OF VENICE 5 

due to the conquest of Constantinople by Doge Enrico 
Dandolo during the fourth Crusade (1204), an epoch-making 
event in the history of Venice which must constantly be 
borne in mind in examining her art-treasures. The little 
outlying western dependency had vanquished the capital of 
the Christian Eastern Empire to which it once belonged. 
The greatness of Venice dates from this period ; it became 
the chief carrier between the east and the west ; its vessels 
exported the surplus wealth of the Lombard plain, and 
brought in return, not only the timber and stone of I stria 
and Dalmatia, but the manufactured wares of Christian 
Constantinople, the wines of the Greek isles, and the 
oriental silks, carpets, and spices of Mohammedan Egypt, 
Arabia, and Bagdad. The Crusades, which impoverished 
the rest of Europe, doubly enriched Venice : she had the 
carrying and transport traffic in her own hands ; and her 
conquests gave her the spoil of many eastern cities. 

It is important to bear in mind, also, that the Venetian 
Republic (down to the French Revolution) was the one part 
of western Europe which never at any time formed a 
portion of any Teutonic empire, Gothic, Lombard, 
Frank, or Saxon. Alone in the west, it carried on unbroken 
the traditions of the Roman empire, and continued its 
corporate life without Teutonic adulteration. Its peculiar 
position as the gate between the east and west made a deep 
impress upon its arts and its architecture. The city re- 
mained long in friendly intercourse with the Byzantine 
realm ; and an oriental tinge is thus to be found in all 
its early buildings and mosaics. St. Mark's in particular 
is based on St. Sophia at Constantinople ; the capitals of 
the columns in both are strikingly similar ; even Arab in- 
fluence and the example of Cairo (or rather of early 
Alexandria) are visible in many parts of the building. 
Another element which imparts oriental tone to Venice is 
the number of imported works of art from Greek churches. 
Some of these the Republic frankly stole ; others it carried 
away in good faith during times of stress to prevent them 
from falling into the hands of the Mohammedan con- 



6 ORIGINS OF VENICE [i. 

querors. The older part of Venice is thus to some extent 
a museum of applied antiquities ; the bronze horses from 
Constantinople over the portal of St. Mark's, the pillars 
of St. John of Acre on the south facade, the Greek lions 
of the Arsenal, the four porphyry emperors near the Doge's 
Palace, are cases in point ; and similar instances will meet 
the visitor in the sequel everywhere. Many bodies of 
Greek oi eastern saints were also carried off from Syria or 
Asia Minor to preserve them from desecration at the hands 
of the infidel ; and with these saints came their legends, 
unknown elsewhere in the west ; so that the mosaics and 
sculptures based on them give a further note of orientalism 
to much of Venice. It may also be noted that the intense 
Venetian love of colour, and the eye for colour which 
accompanies it, are rather eastern than western qualities. 
This peculiarity of a pure colour-sense is extremely noticeable 
both in Venetian architecture and Venetian painting. 

The first Venice with which the traveller will have to 
deal is thus essentially a Romanesque- Byzantine city. 
It rose during the decay of the Roman empire, far from 
barbaric influences. Its buildings are Byzantine in type ; 
its mosaics are mostly the work of Greek or half- Greek 
artists ; its Madonnas and saints are Greek in aspect ; 
often even the very lettering of the inscriptions is in Greek, 
not in Latin. And though ecclesiastically Venice belonged 
to the western or Roman church, the general assemblage 
of her early saints (best seen in the Atrium and Baptistery 
of St. Mark's) is thoroughly oriental. We must remember 
that during all her first great period she was connected 
by the sea with Constantinople and the east, but cut off by 
the lagoons and the impenetrable marshes from all inter- 
course with Teutonised Lombardy and the rest of Italy. In 
front lay her highway : behind lay her moat. At this 
period, indeed, it is hardly too much to say that (save for 
the accident of language) Venice was rather a Greek than 
an Italian city. 

I strongly advise the tourist, therefore, to begin by 
forming a clear conception of this early Greekish Venice 



I.] ORIGINS OF VENICE 7 

of the tenth, eleventh, twelfth, and thirteenth centuries, and 
then go on to observe how the later Italianate Venice grew 
slowly out of it. Mediaeval Italy was not Roman but 
Teutonised : influences from this Teutonic Italy were late in 
affecting the outlying lagoon-land. 

The beginnings of the change came with the conquests 
of Venice on the Italian mainland. Already Gothic 
art from the west had invaded the Republic with the rise 
of the great Dominican and Franciscan churches (San 
Giovanni e Paolo and the Frari) : the extension of Venice to 
the west, by the conquest of Padua and Verona (1405) com- 
pleted the assimilation. Thenceforward the Renaissance 
began to make its mark on the city of the lagoons, though 
at a much later date than elsewhere in Italy. I recommend 
the visitor accordingly, after he has familiarised himself 
with Byzantine Venice, to trace the gradual encroachment 
of Gothic art, and then the Renaissance movement. This 
Guide is so arranged as to make such a task as easy as 
possible for him. But while chronological comprehension 
is thus important, a strictly chronological method is here 
for many reasons both difficult and undesirable. I have 
tried rather to suggest a mode of seeing Venice which will 
unfold the story in the most assimilable order. 

It is best, then, to begin with the architecture, sculpture, 
and mosaics of St. Mark's ; in connection with which the 
few remaining Byzantine palaces ought to be examined. 
The Byzantine period is marked by the habit of sawing 
up precious marbles and other coloured stones (imported 
for the most part from earlier eastern buildings), and using 
them as a thin veneer for the incrustation of brick build- 
ings ; also, by the frequent employment of decorations 
made by inserting ancient reliefs in the blank walls of 
churches or houses. The eastern conquests of Venice 
made oriental buildings a quarry for her architects. The 
Gothic period is marked by a peculiar local style, showing 
traces of Byzantine and Arab influence. The early Renais- 
sance work at Venice is nobler and more dignified than 
elsewhere in Italy. The baroque school of the seven- 



8 ORIGINS OF VENICE [i. 

teenth century, on the other hand, is nowhere so ap- 
palling. 

Venice was essentially a commercial Republic. Her 

greatness lay in her wealth. She flourished as long as 
she was the sole carrier between east and west ; she 
declined rapidly after the discovery of America, and of 
the route to India round the Cape of Good Hope, which 
made the Atlantic supersede the Mediterranean as the 
highway of the nations. As Antwerp, Amsterdam, and 
London rose, Venice fell. The reopening of the Mediter- 
ranean route by the construction of the Suez Canal has 
galvanised her port into a slightly increased vitality of 
recent years ; but she is still in the main a beautiful fossil- 
bed of various strata, extending from the tenth to the 
seventeenth centuries. 

The rise and progress of Venetian painting will be 
traced in detail when we come to consider the Academy; 
but its earliest origins and first motives must be looked 
for in the ancient mosaics of St. Mark's and of Murano. 

Whoever enters Venice by rail at the present day ought 
to bear in mind that he arrives (across the lagoon) by 
the back door. The front door was designed for those 
who came by sea ; there, Venice laid herself out to receive 
them with fitting splendour. The ambassadors or mer- 
chants who sailed up the navigable channel from the mouth 
of the Lido, saw first the Piazza, the Piazzetta, the two 
great granite columns, the campanile, St. Mark's, and the 
imposing facade of the Doge's Palace, reinforced at a later 
date by the white front of San Giorgio Maggiore and the 
cupolas of the Salute. This, though not perhaps the oldest 
part of the town, is the nucleus of historical Venice; 
and to it the traveller should devote the greater part of 
his attention. I strongly advise those whose stay is limited 
not to try to see all the churches and collections of the 
city, but to confine themselves strictly to St. Mark's, the 
Doge's Palace, the Academy, the four or five major 
churches, and the tour of the Grand Canal, made slowly 
in a gondola. 



i.] ORIGINS OF VENICE 9 

Those who have three or four weeks at their disposal, 
however, ought early in their visit to see Torcello and 
Murano — Torcello as perhaps the most ancient city of the 
lagoons, still preserved for us in something like its antique 
simplicity, amid picturesque desolation ; Murano as helping 
us to reconstruct the idea of Byzantine Venice. It is above 
all things important not to mix up in one whirling picture 
late additions like the Salute and the Ponte di Rialto with 
early Byzantine buildings like St. Mark's or the Palazzo 
Loredan, with Gothic architecture like the Doge s Palace or 
the Ca' Doro, and with Renaissance masterpieces, like the 
Libreria Vecchia or the ceilings of Paolo Veronese. Here 
more than anywhere else in Europe, save at Rome alone, 
though chronological treatment is difficult, a strictly 
chronological comprehension of the various stages of 
growth is essential to a right judgment. 

Walk by land as much as possible. See what you see in 
a very leisurely fashion. Venice is all detail ; unless you 
read the meaning of the detail, it will be of little use to you. 
Of course the mere colour and strangeness and picturesque- 
ness of the water-city are a joy in themselves ; but if you 
desire to learn, you must be prepared to give many days to 
St. Mark's alone, and to examine it slowly. 

I take first the group of buildings and works of art which 
cluster around the front door of Venice, the Piazza and the 
Piazzetta. These adequately represent the Byzantine, the 
Gothic, and the Renaissance periods. When you have thus 
familiarised yourself with the keynotes of each great style, 
as locally embodied, you will be in a position to understand 
the rest of Venice. 



The patron saints of Venice are too numerous to cata- 
logue. A few only need be borne in mind by those who pay 
but a short visit of a month or so. The Venetian fleets in the 
early ages brought home so many bodies of saints that 
the city became a veritable repository of holy corpses. 
First and foremost, of course, comes St. Mark, whose 
name, whose effigy, and whose winged lion occur every- 



io ORIGINS OF VENICE [i. 

where in the city ; to the Venetian of the middle ages he 
was almost, indeed, the embodiment of Venice. He sleeps 
at St. Mark's. The body of St. Theodore, the earlier 
patron, never entirely dispossessed, lay in the Scuola (or 
Guild) of St. Theodore, near the church of San Salvatore 
(now a furniture shop). But the chief subsidiary saints of 
later Venice were St. George and St. Catherine, patrons 
of the territories of the Republic, to the first of whom many 
churches are dedicated, while the second appears every- 
where in numerous pictures and reliefs. The great plague- 
saints— Sebastian, Roch, Job— I have treated separately 
later. These seven at least the tourist must remember and 
expect to recognise at every turn in his wanderings. The 
body of St. Nicholas, the sailors' saint, lay at San Niccolo 
di Lido, though a rival body, better authenticated or more 
believed in, was kept at Bari. 

The costume of the Doges, and the Doge's cap ; the 
Venetian type of Justice, with sword and scales ; the almost 
indistinguishable figure of Venetia, also with sword and 
scales, enthroned between lions ; and many like local 
allegories or symbols, the visitor should note and try to un- 
derstand from the moment of his arrival. 

Though I give the whole account of St. Mark's at once, 
for convenience sake, I do not advise the reader to see it all 
at once and consecutively. Begin with the first parts 
described in this book, but intersperse with them visits to 
the Academy, the Churches, and other buildings. St. Mark's 
is best seen in the afternoon, when you will not needlessly 
disturb the worshippers. The Academy closes at 3, and 
must therefore be seen in the morning. Occasional trips 
to the Lido, Chioggia, etc., vary the monotony and strain of 
sight-seeing. 



II 

BYZANTINE VENICE: ST. MARK'S 

THE primitive patron of the town of Rivo Alto, and 
of the Republic of the Venetians, was the martyr 
St. Theodore, whose ancient figure still tops one of the 
columns in the Piazzetta. A church dedicated to this ancient 
saint is said to have occupied (nearly) the site of St. Mark's 
before the ninth century. But in the year 819 (or 813), 
when the seat of government of the Republic was fixed in 
Rivo Alto, the first Doge's Palace was built on the spot 
where its successor now stands, and a Ducal Chapel 
was erected beside it. The body of St. Mark, however, 
was then preserved at Alexandria ; though, after the 
conquest of Egypt by the Arabs in 640, the church of St. 
Mark's in which it was kept was exposed to continual insults 
ftom the victorious infidel. In 829, the Khalif decided to 
destroy the church, for the sake of its marbles. Some Vene- 
tian merchants who happened to be then at Alexandria (a 
proof of the early maritime commerce of the town) succeeded 
in carrying off the body of the saint, and conveying it to 
Venice. On its arrival, it was received in state and housed 
in the Ducal Chapel ; while, in order to show due honour to 
the Evangelist, St. Theodore was deposed from his place as 
patron, and St. Mark was made the tutelary saint of the 
Republic. 

This Chapel, built under Giovanni Participazio, and 
dating from 829 onwards, stood between the old Church of 
St. Theodore, and the Ducal Palace. In ground plan it 
was probably a simple basilica ; ending in the usual apse, 
and without transepts. A few years before the arrival of 



12 BYZANTINE VENICE: ST MARK'S [n. 

the relics the Venetians had defeated Pepin, son of 
Charles the Great, in his attempt to add their territory to 
the Western Empire, and according to their uniform policy 
of making treaties with those least likely to be able to put 
pressure upon them, they had become allies of the Eastern 
Empire. It was therefore natural that the friendly 
Emperor should send artificers to enshrine the relics in 
the new church ; thus from the ninth to the thirteenth 
century the church of St. Mark's owes its form to the art 
of Constantinople. In 976, the church was partially 
burned, but was restored within two years by Pietro 
Orseolo. 

In the time of the Doge Domenico Contarini (1043-1071) 
the church was reconstructed by Byzantine workmen. It 
is said that the general plan was founded on that of the 
Church of the Holy Apostles in Constantinople. However 
that may have been, the character of the building was 
altered by the addition of transepts. On the northern 
side the old church of St. Theodore was dismantled, part 
of the wall being used in the northern transept. The 
southern transept rests on walling formerly part of the 
Ducal Palace. In addition the building now forming the 
atrium, the Capella Zen and the Baptistery were added and 
carried to the height of the balcony on which the bronze 
horses stand. 

The framework of the entire building was probably 
finished in 1071, and the next Doge, Domenico Salvo, it is 
supposed, began the adornment by covering the brick 
walls with marble and the domes and wall spaces below 
with mosaics. This went on for two centuries ; the result 
is seen in the thirteenth -century mosaic over the most 
northerly of the western doors, where there is a picture of 
the facade of the church. 

About the close of the fourteenth and first half of the 
fifteenth century, when the Gothic style had superseded the 
Romanesque and Byzantine, Gothic adornments were 
added, in the shape of pinnacles and pointed gables above 
the chief arches. 



II.] BYZANTINE VENICE: ST MARK'S 13 

The changes thus effected may be seen in the picture by 
Gentile Bellini in the Academy. 

In the sixteenth century and afterward, many of the 
beautiful old mosaics were destroyed, and replaced by jejune 
Renaissance compositions, which have no decorative value. 
But as a whole the church is still essentially Byzantine- 
Romanesque, with only just sufficient intrusion of the 
Gothic element to add a certain touch of bizarre extrava- 
gance. 

The walls are of brick, but they are coated or incrusted 
throughout with thin slabs of many-coloured marble and 
alabaster ; the slender columns are of jasper, serpentine, 
verd-antique, porphyry, and other rare stones, mostly de- 
rived from earlier buildings ; and the whole is profusely 
adorned with gold and mosaic. To the mediaeval Venetian, 
St. Mark was not only the patron but the embodiment of 
Venice ; wherever the Venetian fleets went, they brought 
home in triumph columns and precious stones and reliefs 
and works of art for the further beautifying of the great 
shrine of their protector. St. Mark's is thus a museum of 
collected fragments, as well as a gallery of mosaic-work. 
Its richness of colour is one of its greatest attractions. 

The architecture of St. Mark's, in its original conception, 
was alien on Italian soil. The eleventh-century church had 
little in common with Venetian tastes and ideas. It was 
from the additions of Romanesque, Gothic, and Renais- 
sance times that the building became a reflection of that 
joy in the life of the senses, that has especially dis- 
tinguished the Venetian. 

Throughout the whole flourishing period of Venice the 
shrine of the Evangelist was officially nothing more than 
the domestic chapel of the Doge's Palace. The relatively 
unimportant church of San Pietro di Castello remained the 
cathedral till 1807, at which date St. Mark's superseded it. 

In examining St. Mark's, remember especially three 
things. First, it is the shrine of the body of St. Mark 
the Evangelist, the protector of the Republic, whom every 
Venetian regarded as the chief helper of Venice in times of 



i 4 BYZANTINE VENICE: ST. MARK'S [n. 

trouble. Second, it is the private chapel of the Doge's 
Palace. Third, it is essentially an oriental building, as 

befits what was really an outlying western fragment of the 
eastern empire. 

Very many visits should be paid to St. Mark's. It would 
be impossible within the limits of these Guides adequately 
to describe all the architectural points, the mosaics, and 
the sculpture ; but in the succeeding account I have tried 
first to call attention to the main features, and then to treat 
in detail a few portions of the building as specimens, 
giving the reader some main clues by means of which he 
may work out the meaning of the rest of the building for 
himself on similar principles. St. Mark's is, of course, by 
far the most important thing to see at Venice, and as much 
time as possible should be devoted to repeated visits. Do 
not run about after minor churches before you have 
thoroughly grasped the significance of this marvellous 
building. 

The motto of Venice is " Pax tibi Marce, Evangelista 
meus" — "Peace to thee, Mark, my Evangelist." It will 
occur often on buildings or pictures. 

[Whenever you visit St. Mark's, take your opera glass.] 

General Impression. 

St. Mark's is not in mere size a very large church, but it 
is so vast, in the sense of being varied and complex, that 
it can only be grasped in full after long study. I advise 
you, therefore, to begin by walking round and through the 
building, in order to obtain a comprehensive idea of the 
architectural ground-plan, both from without and within, 
before you proceed to the examination in detail. 

The effect does not depend on the kind of architectural 
features that distinguish a great church north of the Alps. 
Instead of a high frowning mass, there is a broad, low 
building. The system of buttresses which support a 
northern church has no obvious counterpart at S. Marco. 
Instead of the cavernous doorways of Amiens and the deep 
porches of Chartres, there is an atrium in wliich richly-. 




Photograph: Alinar! 

CAPITAL FROM JUSTINIAN'S CHURCH OF S. VITALE 

RAVENNA 

Built in the Sixth Century 

Compare with Capital from S. Marco of the twelfth or thirteenth century 




Photograph : J. W Cruickshank 

ITALO-BYZANTINE CAPITAL FROM THE ATRIUM 

S. MARCO 

Twelfth or Thirteenth Century 

Compare with the Byzantine Capital from S. Vitale of the sixth century 



II.] BYZANTINE VENICE: ST. MARK'S 15 

coloured mosaic pictures take the place of solemn rows of 
sculptured saints. 

Instead of the emphasis given to the whole by great 
towers or spires, the domes of S. Marco add comparatively 
little to the general effect of the exterior. 

In place of the grey stone of the north, nothing is to be 
seen but the rich colour of marbles or porphyry or the 
gleam of mosaic. The charm of the outside of S. Marco 
lies in its brilliant colouring and in its diversity. 

The structure is Byzantine, and that is still the dominant 
note ; but it is only Byzantine, in spite of additions made by 
every school, and in all styles. 

The sculptured panels which add so much to the richness 
and interest of the marble incrustations belong to centuries 
so far apart as the sixth and the thirteenth. 

Lower stories, in which stately columns and string-courses 
suggest the style of an imperial forum, contrast with the 
Gothic pinnacles and the flamboyant crocketing added in 
the fourteenth and fifteenth centuries. 

Throughout there is the piquant contrast between the 
classical and the romantic ideal, and besides this the 
Venetian has in the end secured for himself the air of 
genial gaiety and brightness which he loves. 

The church has three fagades. The western, facing the 
great Piazza ; the northern (to the left), facing the Piazza dei 
Leoni ; the southern (to the right), facing the Piazzetta and 
the Lagoon. 

An Atrium, or vestibule, reaching only to the height of 
the gallery, girds the lower parts of the facades on the 
north and west ; on the south, this Atrium has been en- 
closed to form the Baptistry and the Cappella Zen. 

The roof of the Atrium forms an outer Gallery or terrace, 
on which the bronze horses stand. Above this balcony we 
see the great Arches of the original Byzantine construction 
forming the walls of the body of the church ; on the west 
there are five, on the north, four, on the south, two. 

The church has five Domes (best seen from the middle of 
the Piazza). Three cover the nave, the crossing, and the 



16 BYZANTINE VENICE: ST. MARK'S n. 

choir ; and over each of the transepts there is one. Above 

each dome there is a cross. 

• The Interior. The nave is separated from the aisles 

by a glorious Byzantine colonnade carrying an open 

gallery. 

To the R. and L. of the choir are two apsidal chapels, that 
of St. Clement and that of St. Peter. 

In the north or L. transept are the chapels of Our Lady, 
of St. Isidore, and Dei Mascoli. 

In the south or R. transept, the chapel of the Holy Sacra- 
ment. 

Under the High Altar rests the body of St. Mark. 

Do not attempt to fix all these points at once in your 
memory, but endeavour to gain at first sight as clear a con- 
ception as you can of the four main arms of the church, 
with their aisles or side-chapels. Remember that the whole 
building falls into five main portions — the Centre, and the 
North, South, East, and West branches, each marked by 
its own Dome. Other points will become clearer in the 
sequel. 

Fuller information about St. Mark's as a whole will be 
found in Canon Pasini's Guide de la Basilique St. Marc: an 
admirable account of the mosaics is given in Com. Sac- 
cardo's Les Mosaiques de St. Marc. Both books can be 
procured at Ongania's in the Piazza (S.E. corner). 

The Exterior. 

The effect of the building as a whole is best seen either 
early in the morning, when the sun strikes upon the domes 
from the east, or late in the afternoon, when the fagade is 
in shadow and the roofs and pinnacles are lit up by the 
setting sun. 

At these times the lights and shadows bring out the 
quality of the Domes, their dignity and mass, their pic- 
turesque grouping. The pinnacles are less prominent, the 
colours of the mosaics are more subdued, and the recessed 
^arches over the doors gain in depth and effect. 

..Begin your detailed examination of the exterior with the 



II.] BYZANTINE VENICE: ST MARK'S 17 

West Front. 

Start first with the lower portion, formed by the 
Atrium. 

Set out by taking a seat at the base of the northernmost 
Flagstaff, the one close to the gilded Clock-Tower with 
the big clock. Here you will observe that the lower stage 
consists of five large arches, flanked by two much smaller 
and irregular ones. The central arch is higher than the 
others, so that it impinges upon the terrace. On this 
terrace stand four magnificen antique * Bronze Horses, 
forming a quadriga, or team of four, for a chariot. These 
horses are so important in fixing the date of various portions 
of the church, that I will briefly describe them here. They 
make the only known remaining example of an ancient 
quadriga, and opinions differ as to their date and origin. 
They are believed by some antiquaries to be Greek works of 
the school of Lysippus, but others hold that they are of 
Roman origin. It is almost certain that they once adorned 
the triumphal arch of Nero, whence they were transferred to 
that of Trajan and other subsequent emperors. When 
Constantine founded Constantinople, he took them there to 
adorn the Hippodrome of his New Rome. In 1204, Doge 
Enrico Dandolo conquered Constantinople, and the Podesta 
Zen sent these trophies to Venice, where they were set up 
on the Ducal Chapel in the place where you now see them. 
This date of 1204 is very important for the identification of 
the period of certain mosaics. The horses remained where 
Dandolo set them up till 1797, when Napoleon, having 
extinguished the Republic, took them to Paris, and employed 
them to decorate the summit of the triumphal arch he had 
erected in the Place du Carrousel. In 18 15, however, on 
the final establishment of the European peace, the Emperor 
Francis I. of Austria, to whom Yenetia was assigned, 
restored them to St. Mark's. They are noble specimens of 
ancient sculpture, though defectively cast, portions having 
been hammered in to conceal the imperfections. They 
should be carefully examined, from above and from below, 



18 BYZANTINE VENICE: ST. MARK'S [n. 

by those who are interested in antique sculpture. An ugly 
inscription on the main archivolt of the central door 
beneath records, not their early history, but the trivial fact 
of their restitution by the Austrians. 

Turn now to the Mosaics (on the facade) ; the lunette of 
the central arch is filled by a late and feeble mosaic of the 
Last Judgment (1836). The remaining lunettes contain the 
history of the removal of the body of St. Mark from Alexan- 
dria to Venice. Though (with one exception) late, and 
artistically of little interest, these mosaics, unhappily sub- 
stituted for the fine early ones, should be examined in 
detail as embodying the legend of the foundation of this 
church. 

The series begins to the right. First Arch (r.) on the 
under side of the arch itself, the body of St. Mark removed 
from his church in Alexandria ; (l.) it is placed in a basket 
and covered with leaves ; (centre lunette) the authorities 
examine it, but being told that it is pork, withdraw in aver- 
sion : all of 1660. Second Arch (r.) under side, the arrival of 
the body at Venice on the Venetian ship ; (centre lunette) it 
is received at the quay with religious processions ; (l.) the 
body, on a bier, is carried ashore at Venice : all of 1660. 
Third Arch , beyond the great doorway: Reception of the body 
in state by the Doge and Senators ; a finely-coloured work 
of the eighteenth century, designed by Rizzi,but inappropriate 
for its place. Fourth Arch** a magnificent early thirteenth 
century mosaic, representing the Church of St. Mark into 
which the body is brought. Examine it closely to show the 
state of the church at that date. The central lunette above 
the great doorway, you can see, was then worthily occupied 
by a colossal Byzantine figure of Christ. Beneath this 
figure, two ecclesiastics bear the sacred body on a bier 
into the church ; around stand princes and people, symbol- 
ising, perhaps, the various kings, queens, and distinguished 
persons who have visited the shrine since the reception 
of the Evangelist's body at Venice. All the mosaics of the 
facade were once of this type : the sixteenth century, in 
its pride of accurate drawing and perspective, replaced them 



il] BYZANTINE VENICE: ST. MARK'S 19 

by the present insipid substitutes. You can see copies of 
the originals in the great Bellini picture at the Academy. 

Now step back into the Piazza and look at the upper 
facade, above the Gallery of the Four Horses. Its central 
arch is filled by one great window. The other four arches 
contain four late, weak and uninteresting mosaics (seventeenth 
century) from the History of Christ after the Crucifixion. 
Unlike the series of the Translation of St. Mark,theyread from 
L. to R. First Iwiette, the Descent from the Cross ; second 
lunette, Christ in Hades delivering Adam and Eve and the 
Patriarchs; third lunette, the Resurrection ; fourth lunette, 
the Ascension. All these mosaics, with those of the lower 
lunettes beneath them, replace two sets of four finer early 
compositions, of which one only (that of the Byzantine 
church) now remains to us. Observe the decorative 
superiority of this last, and its suitability to the architecture 
it adorns. Between these lunettes are functionally useful 
figures of water-carriers with rain-spouts, probably symbol- 
ising the Four Rivers of Paradise. 

So far the main fabric of the facade represents the original 
Byzantine-Romanesque building (except in so far as the 
mosaics have been altered), and corresponds with the picture 
of the church given in the thirteenth-century mosaic. The 
turreted pinnacles and gables above are later Gothic addi = 
tions of the fifteenth century. The gables stand over the 
centre of the main arches, and are mere thin screens of 
decoration, with no roof behind them. Examine them all in 
order. 

On the topmost gable of all, in the very centre, stands 
St. Mark himself, bearing his Gospel, in the place of honour 
as patron saint of this church. Below him, on either side, 
are three angels, with gilt metal wings, in veneration, among 
rampant foliage. The uppermost pair swing censers. The 
second pair hold holy-water vessels and sprinklers. The third 
pair have their arms folded in veneration of the Evangelist. 
Beneath them, on a blue firmament set with golden stars, is 
the gilt emblem of the Evangelist, the winged lion, holding 
a book inscribed with the Venetian motto, Pax tibi, Marce, 



20 BYZANTINE VENICE: ST. MARK'S [n. 

Evangelista metis, words spoken to him from heaven while on 
his way from Aquileia. The four other gables, above the 
centres of the arches, have statues of four great warrior 
saints of Christendom, emblematic of the position of Venice 
as champion of the faith against the Infidel in the east— 
a point of great importance at the period when these Gothic 
additions were made to the primitive building. The two 
nearest St. Mark are (L.) St. George, with the red-cross 
shield, and the dragon, above the mosaic of Christ in Hades ; 
and (r.) St. Theodore with his dragon, above the Resurrec- 
tion. These are the two subsidiary patrons of the Republic. 
To the extreme left, above the Deposition, stands (I 
think) St. Proculus, holding a banner ; to the extreme right, 
St. Demetrius. (Perhaps St. Demetrius, L., and St. Proco- 
pius or St. Mercurius, R.) All are armed with gilt-tipped 
spears. Beneath each figure half-lengths of four Prophets, 
holding rolls of their prophecies, emerge among rampant 
and rather flamboyant foliage. 

The intervals between the gables are filled up by six 
little turrets, or canopied pinnacles. Of these the one to 
the extreme left contains the Archangel Gabriel kneeling; 
the one to the extreme right, the Blessed Virgin, praying 
at a prie-Dieu. These two form together an Annunciation. 
The four central turrets contain statues of the Evangelists 
with their symbols, in the following order from L. to R. : 
Matthew, angel ; Mark, lion \ John, eagle ; Luke, bull. 
Our Lady's pinnacle alone is distinguished by spiral shafts. 

Taking the lower facade in further detail, you observe, to 
the extreme L., a small portico, with a stilted arch, contain- 
ing a beautiful decorative design of birds facing one another. 
(See Goblet D'Alviella's Migration of Symbols.) The setting 
of this panel is quite exceptionally ungraceful. It is sup- 
ported below by one lily-capitalled column, the columns 
above being more numerous, as is usual at St. Mark's and 
in Byzantine architecture generally, thus giving a tree-like 
effect of trunk and branches. The upper columns of this 
portico are of porphyry. Between the two to the R. is a water- 
bearer. 




Photograph: J. VV. Cruickshank 



BYZANTINE RELIEF OF MADONNA 

Western Fa$ade, S. Marco 



ii.] BYZANTINE VENICE: ST. MARK'S i\ 

To the extreme R., the little portico forming part of the 
West and South Fronts is one of the most beautiful elements 
of the edifice, architecturally speaking. All its columns and 
capitals should be carefully examined. There is a reason for 
its special decoration. It is the most noticeable portion of 
the building, turned towards the Piazza, the sea, and the 
Doge's Palace, and on it the greatest pains have accordingly 
been lavished. The shafts and capitals of its columns are 
exquisitely beautiful. The short red pillar, without, near 
its outer angle, is the Sacred Stone of Venice, the Pietra 
del Bando, from which the laws of the Republic were pro- 
claimed. 

Next take a seat at the base of the Central Flagstaff, and 
observe the Reliefs let into the walls of the lower facade 
between the arches. Remember that the sculptured panels 
on St. Mark's are, for the most part, unrelated pieces added 
to the building. They are generally most carefully set in 
frames of coloured marble or with dentil mouldings. There 
are six such pieces on the western facade. Beginning with 
the two on either side of the Central Archway, to the r. is 
St. George, to the L. St. Demetrius. St. George, the finer 
figure, is supposed to have been brought from Constanti- 
nople. There is the delicate sensitiveness of Byzantine 
technique. The fastidious accoutrements, the elaborate 
dressing of the hair, and the inconspicuous expression sug- 
gest a court favourite rather than a Christian martyr. In 
technical qualities, in control of the figure, and in easy 
rendering of gesture, this relief stands out clearly from 
ordinary Italo-Byzantine work. 

To the left of St. George is the Madonna, with her arms 
extended in the Byzantine fashion and her Greek monogram, 
' Mother of God." To the R. of St. Demetrius is the angel 
Gabriel. The two form between them an Annunciation, 
separated, as is often the case, by wide spaces. 

The figure of Madonna is that of a mature woman. It 
reaches a subtle note of spiritual elevation rarely attained 
except in the finest Byzantine work. The simplicity of the 
drapery, the delicate scheme of relief, the disregard of 



22 BYZANTINE VENICE: ST, MARK'S [n. 

naturalism, the abstract quality alike of conception and 
execution distinguish the work. 

To the left of Madonna is Hercules with the boar, and to 
the right of Gabriel, Hercules with the stag. The first is 
supposed to be a copy from a Greek model. The second is 
Italo-Byzantine work. The comparatively well-understood 
anatomy and form of the classical work is in striking contrast 
to the hard, rigid limbs and the exaggerated anatomy of the 
torso, in the mediaeval example. 

The dates of the six reliefs are uncertain. Now proceed 
to examine the Doorways. 

To the extreme left, the First Doorway (under the 
thirteenth-century Mosaic) has a beautiful arch of Eastern 
form, with the bust of Christ at the top and two prophets in 
the spandrils. Within the arch are gilt reliefs of Christ, as 
the rider on the white horse (Rev. xix. n ?). Below it are 
the symbols of the four Evangelists, in the following order : 
Luke, bull ; Mark, lion ; John, eagle ; Matthew, angel. 
This order is common in Venice. Beneath the exquisite 
lattice-work is a lintel, with scenes from the life of Christ, 
very obscure, the most decipherable being the Adoration of 
the Magi, the Annunciation to the Shepherds, and the 
miracles in Cana. The workmanship is rude, and the 
figures set in niches imitate the style of Roman Sar- 
cophagi. 

The Second Doorway is square in general outline, with 
similarly decorated columns as in the first, and a centre 
resembling goldsmith-work. 

The Third Doorway contains the main portal, flanked 
by a singularly beautiful group of columns. The capitals of 
these columns are a peculiar Italo-Byzantine adaptation of 
the Acanthus design. Note the deep ruby of the porphyry 
columns against the green marble behind. 

In the lunette immediately above the square door is a 
relief of an angel and a sleeping evangelist. It probably 
represents the legend that as St. Mark was passing the 
lagoon, on his way from Aquileia to Alexandria, an angel 
notified to him in a dream that his basilica would be erected 




Photograph ; J. W. Cruickshanlt 

ITALO-BYZANTINE CARVING OF A SYMBOLICAL CHARACTER 

From the Soffit of the Akch over the Main Doorway, S. Marco 




Photograph: J. W. Cruickshank 



ROMANESQUE FIGURE OF THE "LABOUR OF DECEMBER 

Over the Central Doorway, S. Marco 

Compare with the Italo-Byzantine birds with twined necks 



II.] BYZANTINE VENICE: ST. MARK'S 23 

on this spot. (The legend here described will be more fully 
illustrated hereafter in the Cappella Zen.) The style of the 
sculpture resembles the later work of the Antelami stone- 
masons at Parma. 

In the sculpture upon the successive arches and archi- 
volts rising above the central doorway to the top of the 
building, we have an epitome of the changes in style from 
the eleventh to the sixteenth centuries. 

In the construction also there is a marked contrast between 
the distinguished simplicity of the Byzantine colonnades, the 
rhetoric of the late Mosaic, and the exuberance of the GothiG 
crockets and pinnacles. Although the Venetians have had 
little to do with the execution, they have secured their ideal — 
official devoutness, tempered by sensuous gaiety. 

The first archivolt on the soffit, or under side, is a 
design, Byzantine in style and Romanesque in temper. On 
the left, at the base, is the figure of a man with serpents 
coming from his mouth ; on the right is a woman suckling 
serpents. Judging from other analogous figures, where the 
purpose is more directly explained, these may represent 
Heresy (the man) and the Church (the woman). Above 
Heresy a lion destroys a stag, typical of the devil attacking 
the human soul. Above the Church a child puts its hand in 
a lion's mouth, a symbol of the peace of the kingdom of 
heaven. Other animal symbols in the scroll continue the 
contrast of good and evil. 

On the face of the archivolt the design springs on one 
side from a woman seated on a lion, and on the other from a 
man seated on an ox. The scenes represent childhood and 
youth, the work of hunting and trading — perhaps an epitome 
of the development of man and the social state. 

The under side of the second archivolt has the famous 
-'labours" of the twelve months (with zodiacal signs) thus 
represented, from L. to R. : January, carrying home a tree ; 
February, warming his feet, with the fishes ; March, a warrior 
(Martius) with the ram ; April, carrying a sheep, with the 
bull ; May, seated, and crowned with flowers by two maidens, 
with the heads of the twins ; June, reaping, with the crab ; 



24 &YZANTINE VENICE: ST. MARK'S [n. 

in the keystone, Christ enthroned in the firmament as ruling 
the seasons ; then, July, mowing ; August, taking a siesta, 
above him the sign Virgo ; September, the vintage, with the 
scales; October, digging ; November, catching birds; Decem- 
ber killing pigs. 

The fine leafage, and the beautiful design of vase and birds 
at each end> represent the remains of Byzantine tradition, 
while Romanesque character appears in rude proportions 
and contorted gesture. At the same time, the coming change 
in Italian art makes itself felt in the fresh naturalism of the 
design. 

On the face of this archivolt are figures symbolising 
Religion, with the eight Beatitudes and the seven Virtues. 
Some of these figures have the inexpert heaviness of 
Romanesque work ; others again, such as the dancing figure 
of Hope, on the left, have an abandon, even a verve, that 
almost forecasts the Renaissance. 

The main or third archivolt, surrounding the mosaic 
of the Resurrection, has on its under surface the handicrafts 
of Venice, reading thus from R. to L. : the Fishermen, the 
Smith, the Sawyer, the Woodcutter, the Cooper or Cask- 
maker, the Barber-Surgeon, the Weaver ; in the keystone, 
Christ the Lamb ; the Mason, the Potter, the Butcher, the 
Baker, the Vintner, the Shipwright ; and last of all, in a 
different style, a doubtful figure with crutches, which may 
represent old age. The compositions are overcrowded, and 
there is no attempt to idealise ; as on the Florentine Cam- 
panile a plain statement is made, vigorous and realistic in 
treatment. The outer surface of this archivolt contains 
eight Prophets with scrolls, among exquisite foliage of 
acanthus with conventionalised bosses, typically Byzantine. 

The face of the fourth and highest archivolt, above 
the bronze horses, has stories from Genesis set in lozenge- 
shaped panels of Florentine type ; between the panels 
sombre figures among foliage. The work looks like fully 
developed Florentine sculpture of the fourteenth century. 

On the under side of the arch are patriarchs and evan- 
gelists under Gothic niches. They are in the style of the 




Photograph : J. W. Cruickshank 

BYZANTINE-ROMANESQUE CARVING 
"Hope," from the Central Doorway of S. Marco 



II.] BYZANTINE VENICE: ST MARK'S 25 

fifteenth century, somewhat correct and formal in compari- 
son with the more vigorous work below. 

The next, or fourth doorway, resembles the second, but 
has a fine bronze gate with heads in relief. The last, or 
fifth doorway, has decorative work, and very beautiful 
capitals to some of its columns. 

North Front. 

Now, proceed round the corner furthest from the lagoon, 
into the little Piazzetta dei Leoni, so called from the two 
squat and stumpy red marble lions which guard its entrance; 
they were placed here by Doge Alvise Mocenigo in the 
eighteenth century. 

As before, examine first the lower facade, beginning at 
the further end of the little Piazza, near the Patriarchal 
[Archiepiscopal] Palace. 

The first great arch has, to its R. and L., reliefs of the 
Archangels Michael and Gabriel (Raphael comes later). 
Beneath it stands the monument of Daniele Manin, Dictator 
of the abortive Republic of 1848. 

A little further to the right is a little panel of Victory, 
bearing a palm branch and laurel wreath. 

Round the first corner is a colossal figure of St. Chris- 
topher, bearing the infant Christ. The work is heavy and 
with little vitality ; the feet set flat on the ground. Observe 
the beautiful decorative work throughout this portion of the 
building. Here and elsewhere the marble slabs should be 
closely noted. The little facade to the left of the open door 
into the church has, just under the balcony, five seated 
figures in low relief, Christ between St. John and St. 
Matthew; the other two evangelists, St. Luke and St. Mark, 
being placed on the north wall beyond the angle. St. John 
is inspired by a genius, in the classical style. The relief is 
low, and although the style is unemphatic it is large. The 
simple dignified figures remind one of carvings in ivory. 

Below these figures : a symbolical panel of two stags 
eating the leaves of a tree and drinking from a stream, 
representing the soul in Paradise. On a lower level : relief 



26 BYZANTINE VENICE: ST. MARK'S [it 

of our Lady, in the Greek fashion with adoring angels ; 
charming for the simplicity of the girlish figure and the 
delicate beauty of the setting. Below again, a stiff figure 
of St. Leonard (his altar was formerly just within) with 
something of the same characteristic as the St. Christopher. 
The main north fagade, which commences beyond this 
angle, contains, first, a Gothic doorway, known as the Porta 
dei Fz'ori, so called from the flowers sold here for the 
decoration of the Altar. In this doorway and its surround- 
ings the classical and the romantic spirits seem for once to 
have been fused. There is rich material and fine craftsman- 
ship well controlled ; there is a sense of order and sym- 
metry, elaborate and mystical design, and a love of nature. 
High above the containing arch John the Evangelist, stiff 
but classical. The large arch is carved with Prophets, set 
in rich foliage. On the cusped and pointed arch within are 
figures of angels. On the inner design, birds and animals 
feed on the vine, symbolical of the nourishment of the 
word. And in the centre of all this wealth of imaginative 
setting is the Nativity, a piece of rude Romanesque 
carving. 

Under the second arch from the Porta dei Fiori is a 
mosaic panel with the design of a cross and two trees 
repeated, as chey are often found on ivories of Eastern 
tradition. 

At the corners are circular panels said to date from 976 ; 
the one with peacocks may do so, but the rude figures 
of men riding on a lion and on a monster, and fighting with 
a lion, are unusually barbarous samples of Italo-Byzantine 
work, if such they be. 

Below the balcony and on either side of this arch, there 
are two reliefs. To the left Abraham and Isaac on the 
way to the mountain of sacrifice. The typical significance 
is marked by the wound of a nail in the hand which comes 
from the clouds to stay the act of sacrifice. 

The relief between the next two arches is an illustra- 
tion from the mediaeval legend of Alexander the Great. 
He is seated in a car to which two griffins are har- 



II.] BYZANTINE VENICE: ST. MARK'S 27 

nessed. Above their heads he holds two little animals 
on the ends of spears, as a bait to tempt them to fly 
upwards so that he may be raised above the earth. 
Alexander, having explored all the known earth and the 
depths of the sea, hoped by this means to investigate the 
heavens. According to the legend, he was admonished by 
the words, "Thou who dost not truly know the things of 
the earth, dost thou seek to know those of Heaven?" 

Under the next arch is an early symbolical Greek relief 
of the twelve Apostles as twelve sheep, flanked by palm 
trees. In the centre the Lamb and the cross enthroned. 
This is the mystic subject known as " The Preparation 
of the Throne" for the Last Judgment. The Greek in- 
scriptions are, "The Holy Apostles," "The Lamb." Here 
the Greeks avoid the realism of Western art, they present 
the mystery of the second coming of Christ symbolically. 
At the four corners are circular reliefs of a barbarous 
type, representing two eagles and a griffin devouring their 
prey, the fourth has a monster with four bodies uniting 
in one head. The last relief is that of Raphael, concluding 
the series of Archangels begun at the opposite end of 
the facade. 

The Upper Facade has decorative work in coloured 
marbles. 

The Gothic additions consist of pinnacles, under which 
are figures of the Virtues. Beginning to the left, Hope 
(with clasped hands) ; Temperance (with cup and flagon) ; 
Faith (with cross and chalice) ; Prudence (with mirror) ; 
Charity (with a child) ; the other two Cardinal virtues are 
on the south front. The figures under the canopied pin- 
nacles are St. Michael the Archangel and the four Latin 
Doctors, St. Gregory, St. Ambrose, St. Augustine, and 
St. Jerome, as interpreters of the four Evangelists. (Jerome 
bears a church to the extreme L. I cannot myself dis- 
criminate any symbols of the others.) 



28 BYZANTINE VENICE: ST. MARK'S [n. 

South Front. 

This facade, seen from the Piazzetta, shows more clearly 
than any other part of the exterior the detail of Byzantine 
constructions. 

The first arch of the lower facade as we proceed towards 
the Doge's Palace contains two Griffins, with a calf and a 
child respectively in their paws. The ugly Renaissance 
pediment between them, forming the back of an altar within, 
harmonises ill with the architecture. 

The upper facade in this portion is the richest in 
ornament of the entire building. Its two great arches are 
filled with elaborate pierced screen-work. In the minor 
central arch is a famous and specially revered mosaic of 
the Madonna, before which two lamps are nightly lit. 
Beneath the base of the two canopies are mosaics of St. 
Christopher with a child, and St. Nicholas Of Myra. The 
Gothic additions have, on the gables, Justice, with the 
sword and scales, and Fortitude, tearing open the lion's 
mouth. These conclude the series of Virtues (three Theo- 
logical and four Cardinal) begun on the North Fagade. 
Under the canopied pinnacles are the two first anchorites, 
(R.) St. Anthony and (l.) St. Paul the Hermit. Study the 
whole of this facade in detail carefully. 

A little beyond and further out into the Piazza stand two 
square Greek pillars, brought from the church of St. Saba 
at Ptolemais (St. John of Acre) in 1256 by Lorenzo Tiepolo 
as a trophy of his victory over the Genoese. They are 
covered with fine decorative work and Greek monograms. 
The Latin crosses below were cut on them at Venice. 

The projecting angle towards the Doge's Palace also 
forms a portion of St. Mark's, being the outer wall of the 
Treasury. Its time-stained marble coating retains more of 
the antique aspect, unspoiled by restoration, than the re- 
mainder of the building. At the angle is a curious ^porphyry 
relief of four figures embracing one another in pairs, about 
which many idle tales are told, but of whose origin and 
meaning nothing definite is known. They are Greek in 




> -~^mr C-^-r ^FV^. ■ w 

APmm 



II.] BYZANTINE VENICE: ST. MARK'S 29 
workmanship, and probably came from Ptolemais. Into 
the chief portion of the wall between them and the main 
doorway of the Doge's Palace (the Porta della Carta), 
several decorative Reliefs have been let into the wall. 

Some of these panels are closely allied to work of the 
ninth century at Constantinople. Some have geometrical, 
others interlacing, and other leaf and foliage designs. The 
relief with two peacocks feeding on a vine springing from 
a cup is probably sacramental in intention. Below, is a 
variant of an ancient Eastern design in which griffins are 
set on each side of the sacred tree. Originally the griffins 
were the guardians of treasure ; here they are placed on 
each side of the vine. 

In these panels the refinement, the sense of proportion, 
and feeling for rhythmical quality are delightful. 

The rest of the exterior of St. Mark's to the south is for 
the most part hidden by the Doge's Palace and other 
buildings. 

The Atrium. 

The mosaics are amongst the earliest and finest in the 
building. 

Enter by the Main Central Door of the West Front or 
Principal Facade. Its outer gate is of bronze, with lions' 
heads. Facing you, as you enter it, is the Inner Doorway, 
in whose lunette is a fine Renaissance mosaic figure of St. 
Mark, of 1545, after a cartoon by Titian. Beneath this, in 
exquisite Byzantine niches, are "^mosaics of Our Lady and 
six Apostles as follows : Andrew, Thomas, Peter, Paul, 
James, Simon ; and, without niches, Philip and Bartholo- 
mew, less ancient. Under them, on either side of the door, 
come the four Evangelists, named, and with a rhyming 
leonine Latin inscription. 

The Vestibule, or Atrium, theoretically supposed to be 
intended for the use of those who have not yet entered the 
church (i.e., the unbaptised and inquirers or catechumens), 
is decorated with mosaics (Byzantine in type) representing 
the chief facts of the Old Testament history. It repre- 



30 BYZANTINE VENICE: ST. MARK'S [n. 

sents the Jewish Church, previous to the New Dispensation. 
The series begins with the Creation, and ends (as usual) 
with the Fall of the Manna, which last is always regarded as 
typical of the spiritual food, that is to say, of Christ. The 
particular episodes selected for illustration are in every case 
those which mediaeval theologians regarded as foreshadowing 
the life of the Saviour, or the New Testament history. 
Precisely similar and almost identical scenes occur as 
illuminations in the fifth century illuminated Greek Bible 
(fragmentary) in the Cottonian collection. 

Turn to the R., and begin with the furthest Cupola next 
to the Cappella Zen. 

Seating yourself on the low red seat between the two 
doors which give towards the Piazza, look up at the cupola. 
It contains the history of the Creation. Figures in white, 
varying in number, symbolise the days. [First tier, top or 
centre :] I. The Spirit of God moves upon the face of the 
waters. 2. The Lord creates light and darkness, with the 
First Day. 3. The Lord makes a firmament, with Second 
Day. 4. The Lord divides the waters above from the 
waters below. 5. The Lord makes dry land and plants, 
with Third Day. [Second tier.] 1. The Lord makes lights 
in the firmament of heaven, symbolised by a starry globe 
bearing the sun and moon. 2. The Lord makes birds and 
fishes. 3. The Lord makes living things. The angel-like 
figures 1 symbolise still the number of the days. 4. The 
Lord creates the quadrupeds. (Cross over to the other 
side to see the remainder better.) 5. The Lord makes 
man as a small dark red figure, not yet living. 6. *The 
Lord rests on the seventh day and blesses it. The six 
days of the week, already past, are symbolised by six 
angels behind the Lord ; the seventh day, personified, 

1 The surrounding- inscriptions in Latin are not from the Vulgate 
but from the old version known as the Italic, which often varies 
considerably from it, and still more from the English translation. 
Occasionally phrases are shortened or simplified. I therefore give 
in each case their rough sense, not the familiar English words, in 
order to better illustrate the meaning of the mosaics. 



ii.] BYZANTINE VENICE: ST. MARK'S 31 

is receiving the Lord's blessing. 7. The Lord breathes 
into man the breath of life, represented by a small 
winged soul. Note in all these early mosaics the intense 
symbolism. 8. The Lord takes Adam into Paradise, the 
four rivers of which are represented by four recumbent 
River Gods with urns — a classical survival. Many minor 
symbolic points too numerous to mention may be noted 
by the curious observer. (Cross over again.) [Third tier.] 
1. Adam names the beasts. 2. The Lord puts Adam into a 
deep sleep, and draws Eve from his side, to the R. *$. The 
Lord presents Eve to Adam. 4. The serpent tempts Eve. 
5. Eve plucks the apple, and (twice represented in the same 
scene) gives it to Adam. 6. Adam and Eve clothe them- 
selves with leaves. (Cross over.) 7. The Lord inquires 
of Adam, who answers, "The woman Thou gavest unto me," 
etc. 8. The Lord chides Adam and Eve. 9. Adam and 
Eve hear their sentence of punishment. 10. *The Lord 
gives Adam and Eve garments (very naive). 12. The Lord 
expels Adam and Eve from the gate of Paradise ; to the R. 
they labour outside the garden. (All these subjects are 
closely copied from Byzantine originals of the fifth century. 
Designs almost identical are found in the very ancient 
illuminated Greek Bible of the Cottonian collection in the 
British Museum.) 

In the pendentives, below the cupola, are four admirable 
*six-winged seraphs. Observe how exquisitely they, and 
the decoration beneath them, are adapted for filling the 
space assigned them. Under these, over the doorway of St. 
dement, the history of Genesis is continued. The com- 
mand to be fruitful and multiply ; the birth of Abel, Cain 
to the R. ; Cain and Abel offer sacrifices — with an interesting 
rhyming hexameter. 1 Next, on the wall to the R., over the 
door into the Cappella Zen — below L., Cain and Abel go 

1 As this Guide is intended for general use, I do not transcribe the 
inscriptions in the text ; but, for the sake of those classical scholars 
who may desire to have their numerous abbreviations simplified, I 
have added the whole of those in the Atrium written out at length 
in an Appendix. 



32 BYZANTINE VENICE: ST. MARK'S [n. 

forth into the field ; R. Cain kills Abel ; above, L., Cain is 
angry ; R., the Lord (represented here and elsewhere in 
these mosaics by a hand showing from a firmament) inquires 
of Cain what he has done to his brother. In the arch by 
the outer portal is the Curse of Cain. 

On the under side of the arch between this first cupola 
and the main portal (door of St. Mark) is represented the 
History of Noah. It begins on the L. side, towards the 
Piazza. Above, the Lord, as a hand from a firmament (a 
recurrent point which I will not again notice), gives the 
command to Noah to build the ark ; then, the building of 
the ark. Second tier : the clean and unclean animals enter 
the ark, by sevens and by pairs respectively. Third tier : 
the family of Noah enter the ark. R. side, towards the 
church ; above, the deluge (observe the rain) ; Noah sends 
out the raven and the dove. Secoiid tier : the return of the 
dove with the olive branch ; the exit from the ark (notice 
the escaping lion). Third tier: Noah's sacrifice, and the dis- 
persal of the animals. 

The lattice-work, with inscription beneath, opposite these 
last mosaics, forms the totnb of Doge Vitale Falier, made up 
of antique fragments. The great Doge, in whose reign the 
body of St. Mark was miraculously recovered, lies in an 
early Christian sarcophagus. The wife of Doge Vitale 
Michiel occupies a similar tomb beyond the principal door- 
way. 

Continue the series of mosaics beyond the main portal. 
The mosaics on the under side of the arch between the 
door of St. Mark and that of St. Peter begin on the inner 
or R. side. Above : Noah plants a vineyard ; the drunken- 
ness of Noah ; Ham sees his father's nudity and announces 
the fact to Shem and Japheth. Below: Shem and Japheth 
cover their father with a robe ; the curse of Ham : the 
burial of Noah. L. side, the building of Babel ; from 
above, the Lord observes it in the heavens ; then, the Lord 
descends in a glory of angels to confound the languages. 

The next door is that of St. Peter, with his image in a 
lunette above it. This section of the Atrium contains the 



ii.] BYZANTINE VENICE: ST. MARK'S 33 

Story of Abraham ; it begins in the second cupola just 
above the head of St. Peter, and reads to the R. The Lord 
chooses Abraham ; next, the departure of Abraham with a 
great cavalcade of camels from Ur of the Chaldees ; Lot is 
made prisoner by the king of Sodom ; the meeting of 
Abraham and Melchisedec, both named ; Abraham's inter- 
view with the king of Sodom ; Sarah brings Hagar to 
Abraham ; the flight of Hagar ; the angel comforts Hagar 
in the wilderness ; the birth of Ishmael ; the institution of 
the rite of circumcision ; the last subject, very obscure, 
represents, I think, the circumcision of the stranger 
" bought with money." 

In the arch above the figure of St. Peter, L., Abraham 
receives the three angels : R., he ministers to them at table, 
while Sarah at the door of the tent laughs at the prediction 
of the birth of Isaac. Opposite, above the outer door, the 
birth of Isaac ; his circumcision. In the pende?itives of this 
cupola are medallions of the Four Greater Prophets. 

The under side of the arch between the second and 
third cupolas has a figure of Justice (the first of a series of 
Virtues which begins here), and the two pillar saints, 
St. Alipios and St. Simeon Stylites, very curious. 

Corner cupola, the Story of Joseph ; it begins by the 
middle of the inner arch, just above the figure of Charity : 
Joseph's dream of the sheaves which bow down to the 
twelfth sheaf; Joseph tells his dream to his brothers ; the 
brothers complain to Jacob, who reproves Joseph ; Jacob 
sends out Joseph to find his brethren ; Joseph discovers 
them (notice in these two cases his bundle) ; the brethren 
hide Joseph in the well ; the brethren feast, while the 
Ishmaelites approach with their camels ; Joseph is taken 
out of the well ; the brothers sell him to the Ishmaelites ; 
the Ishmaelites, with their camels, conduct him to Egypt ; 
Reuben seeks Joseph in the well ; Jacob's sons show 
their father the torn and bloody coat, with the grief of 
Jacob. 

The ftendentives have medallions of four prophets, Eli, 
Samuel, Nathan, Habakkuk, holding rolls with inscriptions. 



34 BYZANTINE VENICE: ST MARK'S [n. 
I omit notice of many beautiful decorative bands and arches. 
The reader must observe these points for himself. 

The half-dome, at the end of the Atrium, looking N., 
contains a feeble representation of the Judgment of 
Solomon, sixteenth century. Beneath it is the tomb of Doge 
Bartolomeo Gradenigo (d. 1342), consisting of an early 
Pisan sarcophagus, with Our Lady and Child, St. Mark (his 
patron as Doge), and St. Bartholomew (his personal patron), 
presenting the Doge to Our Lady ; at the corners, an 
Annunciation : beneath is an interesting inscription. Annun- 
ciations and presentations of the deceased by his patrons 
are habitual features on Venetian tombs. 

The under side of the arch between the corner cupola 
and the first cupola of the northern branch has in its 
centre a good Byzantine figure of Charity ; R., St. Phocas, 
the Greek patron saint of sailors, and therefore very appro- 
priate to a commercial and seafaring city ; L., a poor modern 
figure of St. Christopher wading through the river with the 
infant Christ. 

The first north cupola contains the continuation of the 
History of Joseph. The mosaics of this portion of the 
church are remarkable for their increased story-telling 
faculty, in which respect they are unequalled in St. Mark's. 
The story begins just over the figure of Hope, in the arch 
beyond it : Joseph is sold to Potiphar (observe the cos- 
tumes of the Ishmaelites and the Egyptians) ; Potiphar 
confides his whole household to Joseph ; Potiphar's wife 
tempts Joseph ; Joseph flees from Potiphar's wife, leaving 
his coat behind him ; the woman shows the coat to all her 
household ; arrest of Joseph, who is condemned to im- 
prisonment ; Pharaoh, throned and crowned, sends to prison 
the Chief Baker and the Chief Butler ; the dreams of the 
Baker and Butler ; Joseph interprets them. 

The fiendentives continue the story, beginning on the R. 
(inner, or south-east) angle : Pharaoh recalls the Chief 
Butler ; the birds devour the Chief Baker ; Pharaoh's 
dream ; the seven lean kine devour the seven fat ones, v 

Arch to the R. (between the Butler and Baker) ; above , 



II.] BYZANTINE VENICE, 

Pharaoh's dream of the well-favoured and ill-favoured ears ; 
below: Pharaoh asks the interpretation of his dream of his 
wise men ; the Chief Butler tells him of Joseph. 

In the half-dome opposite : feeble and mannered 
Renaissance mosaic of Joseph interpreting Pharaoh's 
dream. Beneath it, Doge Marino Morosini (d. 1253) is 
buried in an early Christian sarcophagus, the inscription on 
which alone is of his own period. The sarcophagus repre- 
sents, above, in the centre, Christ, flanked by the twelve 
Apostles ; in the lower tier, Our Lady and four saints, un- 
determined, separated by four censers. The style of the 
sarcophagus is that of the sixth century. 

Under the arch between this cupola and the next, 
in the centre, Hope ; beneath it, a beautiful Byzantine 
mosaic of *St. Agnes, with a modern one of St. Catharine ; 
then, St. Sylvester the Pope, and a Renaissance figure of 
San Geminiano (whose church at that time occupied part of 
the Piazza), from a cartoon by Titian. 

I will not so minutely describe the subjects in the next 
two cupolas, as they may by this time, I think, be followed 
by the reader on the strength of his own scriptural know- 
ledge. The second north cupola contains the remainder 
of the History of Joseph, the story in this case beginning at 
the opposite side from what has hitherto been usual, just 
above the figure of Hope in the arch last described. The 
subjects are : Jacob sending his sons to Egypt for corn ; 
Joseph treats them as spies ; Jacob's sons repent ; Simeon is 
bound ; the corn is placed in the granaries ; the birth of 
Ephraim ; the Egyptians clamour for bread ; Joseph opens 
the granaries. 

In the pendeniives, the four Evangelists. R. lunette; 
the sons of Jacob empty their sacks ; Jacob sends Benjamin; 
Benjamin received by Joseph. On the under side of the 
arch which spans this lunette are five Roman saints, 
Cecilia, Cassianus, Cosmo, Damian, Gaudens, and one, 
restored as St. Marinus, but more probably (since she 
balances Cecilia,) the virgin saint Marina, who dressed as a 
man to preserve, her virginity. 



36 BYZANTINE VENICE: ST. MARK'S [n. 

Arch leading to the next section : the " Queen of the 
South," holding her roll of prophecy ; below her, St. 
Nicholas and St. Blaise (Biagio) ; below again, two Domi- 
nican saints, St. Dominic, and St. Peter Martyr. 

In the last cupola is the Story of Moses, which may now 
be safely left to the reader. The fie?idejitives contain four 
prophets. 

Over the doorway at the end, known as the Doorway of 
St. John, is a large mosaic in a half-dome, representing Our 
Lady with the Child, seated, with her Greek monogram, 
flanked by St. John the Evangelist and St. Mark ; her 
throne and cushion are meant to be characteristically 
Byzantine. But this is a tolerable modern imitation, dating 
from 1840. It lacks the grandeur and solemnity of the 
simple old work. It probably replaces an older mosaic of 
St. John, to whom the door and the chapel opposite (now 
that of the Blessed Virgin) were formerly dedicated. 



The Interior. 

Set out on your examination of the interior by entering at 
the main portal, or St. Mark's Door (centre of West 
Front) ; should this be closed, as is sometimes the case, 
enter by one of the other doors, but return at once to this, 
at the end of the Nave, or West Arm of the Greek Cross. 
Many visits are needed to gain a full perception of that 
severity of choice and that sense of colour which is the note 
of Byzantine method. The sombre shades of the marble 
panelling, the dull gleam of gold, and the deep flush of 
porphyry, make a harmonious whole, whether seen in the 
early morning, when the lighting is entirely from the small 
round-headed windows in the domes ; or in the afternoon, 
when the sunshine streams through the large windows of 
the S. Transept and the Western Wall. 

In the appreciation of mosaics, it is to be remembered 
that the little cubes of which they are composed never 
present an absolutely flat surface. The coloured mosaics, 
seen at different angles, send out flashes of coloured light, 



II.] BYZANTINE VENICE: ST. MARK'S 37 

while the gold can appear as a white sparkling metal, or as 
1 dead yellow colour, accordingly as the light strikes upon 
it. These changing effects are part of the charm of mosaic 
decoration. 

Dominant Ideas. 
The main central li?ie or axis of the inner church, from 
the Door of St. Mark to the Apse at the E. End, is devoted 
almost entirely to Christ and the chief facts of the Christian 
religion (but in a subsidiary degree to St. Mark the patron). 
Contrary to what one might expect, however, the Gospel 
story begins at the Apse, and ends by the main entrance. 
If you stand under the Central Dome, in front of the Pres- 
bytery, this fact will become quite clear to you. In the 
Apse which faces you, and which forms as it were the focus 




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of the Basilica, closing the vista inward, you have the 
gigantic figure of the Redeemer Himself. In the Eastern 
Dome, over the Presbytery, are represented Christ and the 
Prophets who prophesied of Him. The arch, between this 



38 BYZANTINE VENICE: ST. MARK'S [n. 

dome and the next, has the facts of the Infancy and Minis- 
try. The Central Dome, over your head, shows the 
Ascension, with Our Lady and the twelve Apostles. It 
is interposed here because of its central importance. Look- 
ing westward horn, the same point, the Great Arch between 
the two Transepts gives the history of the Passion and 
Resurrection : the side arches have the immediate episodes 
of the Gospel history. Thus the whole central area tells the 
life of Christ, culminating in its centre with the Ascension. 
In the Western Dome is the Descent of the Holy Ghost, 
with the Christian people. The mosaics on either side of it 
(in the Aisles) give the acts and martyrdoms of the Apostles. 
The last Great Arch has the Vision of the Apocalypse, and 
the Last Judgment. This main trunk or axis of the church 
is thus a brief epitome of the entire Christian doctrine — the 
preparation for Christ ; the Prophecies of Christ ; the life 
and Passion of Christ ; the Resurrection ; the Ascension ; 
the Descent of the Holy Ghost ; the Second Advent ; the 
Last Judgment ; and the Life of the World to Come, in 
Paradise or in torment. 

The three Great Domes also correspond to the division of 
the world into three ages according to the teaching of the 
Abbot Joachim of Flora, whose prophecies had a widely 
spread influence in the twelfth and thirteenth centuries. The 
eastern Dome represents the First Person of the Trinity, and 
the Reign of Law, when man lived in obedience. The second 
corresponds to the Second Person, and to the Reign of 
Grace, when man lives in faith. The western dome repre- 
sents the Third Person and the Reign of the Spirit, or of 
Love, when man shall live in the freedom of the Spirit. 

From another point of view the church is devoted to St. 
Mark the Evangelist, and to the other chief saints of the 
Venetian people. The Central Door, which leads to it, bears 
his name and image ; as you look up from this door, the 
principal object in front of you, behind the screen, is the 
High Altar, which contains his relics. In the apse are his 
mission to Aquileia and his connection with St. Peter. The 
chief mosaics to the L. of the Presbytery tell the history of 



II.] BYZANTINE VENICE: ST MARK'S 39 

his life and martyrdom j the chief mosaics to the R. of the 
Presbytery tell the story of the removal of his body to Venice. 
Christ and St. Mark, with the Madonna, are thus the leading 
chords : in the mosaic over the inner side of the main portal 
we get these three figures significantly associated. 

The line of the L. Aisle, which begins at the Door of St. 
Peter, ends in the Apsidal Chapel of St. Peter, the spiritual 
father of St. Mark. St. Peter is here the chief figure. The 
line of the R. Aisle, which begins at the Door of St. Clement, 
ends at the Apsidal Chapel of St. Clement, whose relics are 
preserved in its altar, but whose exact connection with this 
church I do not quite understand. These two lines have 
thus a clear reference to the Apsidal Chapels. 

The North Transept, entered by the Door of St. John, 
had originally over it the image of that saint, whose history 
is represented in the Dome of the N. Transept. (His figure 
is still within above the portal.) The Chapel at its end was 
dedicated to St. John. Since the seventeenth century, how- 
ever, the Chapel has been converted into that of the miracu =■ 
Ious Virgin of Constantinople ; and her Byzantine image 
has been substituted over the entrance door for that of St. 
John. The symbolism of this portion of the church, originally 
Johannine, has thus been gravely disturbed by the increased 
modern devotion to Our Lady. 

The South Transept, not now approached by any direct 
door, save a private one from the Doge's Palace, had its 
Chapel originally dedicated to St. Leonard, a saint of early 
importance at Venice, to whom many of the mosaics above 
still refer ; but as it has now been turned into a Chapel of the 
Holy Sacrament, the symbolism has been obscured here also. 
Its dome has four great local patrons, and four holy Virgins 
of Aquileia. 

These are only a few brief notes on the central conceptio?is 
of the decoration ; those who care to observe closely for 
themselves the relations of the minor parts, and the distribu- 
tion of relics and mosaics, will find that much light is thus 
cast upon the assemblage of saints or subjects in the various 
arches. In no part of the building is the grouping arbitrary, 



40 BYZANTINE VENICE: ST. MARK'S [ii, 

though it has often been made to seem so by modern alter- 
ations. Corresponding sides or arches have usually corre- 
sponding saints or episodes. By walking up each of the 
main lines from end to end, you will gain an increased sense 
of the relations of the component members ; and of the 
scheme of their symbolism. Most of the minor saints are 
those of the various Venetian parishes, or those whose relics 
are preserved in Venice. 

As a whole, the Atrium gives the Jewish half of the Chris- 





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tian scheme ; the interior gives the Gospel half. The Old 
Testament is the vestibule; the New is the completed 
church or full scheme of Salvation. 

We begin now the detailed examination of the mosaics. 



II.] BYZANTINE VENICE: ST. MARK'S 41 

Above the central door, in the lunette, there is beautiful 
and very early *mosaic of Our Lord enthroned between Our 
Lady and St. Mark ; the two former have their Greek mono- 
grams. This is one of the most ancient mosaics in the 
whole basilica. It bears the inscription (in rhyming Latin), 
" I am the gate of life ; through Me, My members 
pass." 

In the Nave and Aisles (or West Arm of the cross), con- 
fine your attention for the present to the lower portion, up to 
the level of the Gallery. (The mosaics above this level are 
best seen from the Gallery itself, which we shall afterwards 
visit.) The magnificent mosaic pavement of marble and 
other precious stones should also be noted in every part of 
the building ; it presents exquisite decorative patterns and 
animal symbolism, the two peacocks with a central object 
being the most frequent design. Part of it has been 
" restored " and straightened with disastrous effect : the 
older wavy portion is exceedingly lovely. Observe also the 
marble panelling or incrustation of the walls. 

Enter the R. or S. Aisle. In the first arch, on the wall to 
the R., are good early reliefs of Our Lord between Our Lady 
and St. John the Evangelist. On the under side of the arch, 
between this and the next compartment, two excellent 
mosaics of St. Paul the Hermit, in his robe of rushes, and 
St. Hilarion, another of the early ascetics, lean and meagre, 
covered with leaves only. On the R. wall of the S. Aisle 
are fine early mosaics of Our Lady in the centre, flanked by 
four prophets who have prophesied of her, named, and hold- 
ing rolls of their prophecies ; the two nearest to her are her 
royal ancestors, David and Solomon ; Isaiah's roll bears the 
usual inscription, " Behold, a virgin shall conceive and bear 
a son." 

Now cross over the church to the L. or N. Aisle (north 
compartment of the West Arm of the cross). Here, in a 
position answering to that of Our Lady opposite, is a beau- 
tiful youthful **Byzantine figure of the beardless Christ 
(bare-footed), similarly flanked by four prophets who have 
prophesied of Him. The Christ is one of the most beautiful 



42 BYZANTINE VENICE: ST MARK'S [n. 

forms in the entire building. (In very early art He is always 
represented beardless.) 

The arcade which supports the gallery in the R. or S. 

Aisle has on the under side of its arches other mosaics : first 
arch, St. Julian and St. Cesarius ; second and third arches, 
decorative. (Observe here the beautiful architecture of the 
gallery, and the marble coating beneath it. On the floor, a 
fine mosaic pattern of peacocks and grapes.) Fourth arch, 
St. Felicianus and St. Primus. The L. or N. Aisle is 
similarly decorated, its saints being, first arch, St. Fermus, 
and St. Felix (standing over a handsome holy-water vessel), 
fourth arch, SS. Nazarius and Felicius. The quaint little 
tabernacle under the fourth arch is the Chapel of the Cruci= 
fix. 

Do not quit this Nave and Aisles until you have grasped 
their relation to the rest of the building. 



Before examining further the main body of the interior, 
I strongly advise you to find the Sacristan and get him to 
unlock the gate of 

The Baptistery, 
which is entered by a door in the Right Aisle, not far from 
the St. Clement entrance. You pay on leaving (see below). 
At least one whole morning— a sunny one if possible — 
should be devoted to examining this chapel and the Cappella 
Zen. Remember that they contain far more objects of 
artistic interest than most northern cathedrals. 

The Baptistery, with the adjoining chapel, formed origin- 
ally a portion of the Atrium, but was shut off from it appar- 
ently about the thirteenth century. In the middle of the 
fourteenth century, the great Doge Andrea Dandolo (elected 
in 1342) gave a commission to have the whole of the 
Baptistery decorated throughout with mosaics. These works 
thus form a transitional link between the early Byzantine 
type and the later Renaissance handicraft which we shall 
observe hereafter, and some specimens of which we have 
already seen in the exterior. In examining the Baptistery 



II.] BYZANTINE VENICE: ST. MARK'S 43 

therefore, bear these two facts in mind: (1st) that its pur- 
pose is that of administering baptism, on which account it 
is naturally dedicated to the institutor of the rite, St. John 
the Baptist, while almost all its decorations bear direct 
reference to his life or to the sacrament of baptism ; (2nd) 
that it is a monument of Doge Andrea Dandolo, whose 
tomb it contains, the great prince choosing to be buried in 
the midst of this noble memorial of his own munificence. 

The Baptistery consists of three portions : (1) that with 
the font, by which you enter ; (2) that to the left with the 
altar; both these have cupolas ; (3) a little vaulted room 
to the R., near the entrance to the Cappella Zen. 

Begin with the second of these, and examine, first, the 
*mosaic in the lunette above the altar. It represents the 
Crucifixion, with the usual accompanying figures of Our 
Lady and St. John the Evangelist, named above. Water and 
blood (the former unusual) gush from the Redeemer's wounds 
— the water (John xix. 34) clearly symbolising baptism. 
Beyond Our Lady, to the L., stands St. Mark, patron of the 
Church, with his open Gospel ; beyond St. John the 
Evangelist, to the R., St. John the Baptist, patron of the 
chapel. At the foot of the cross, close to the usual skull of 
Adam, kneels Doge Andrea Dandolo himself, the donor, in 
his ducal cap and robe. On either side kneel his Grand 
Chamberlain and a senator. The whole thus tells the story 
of this Baptistery, in this church of St. Mark, decorated by 
this Doge, aided by his subordinates. 

Neglecting for the moment the cupola and other 
decorations, look next at the mosaic in the lunette to your 
R. as you face the altar. It begins a series of scenes from 
the life of the Baptist, continued round the three rooms at 
the same level. Its subjects are, from L. to R. : the angel 
appears to Zacharias ; Zacharias is struck dumb ; he goes 
forth from the Temple to the people ; he meets his wife, 
Elizabeth. The story continues in the lunette of the next 
compartment, pierced by a window : birth of St. John the 
Baptist, a poor sixteenth-century work substituted for the 
fine original. 



44 BYZANTINE VENICE: ST. MARK'S [n. 

Seat yourself on the red marble seat to the R., facing 
south, between the compartment with the font and the 
vaulted room, to examine the next two mosaics on the 
wall which gives access io the Cappella Zen. L. of the 
central arch, an angel leads the infant John into the 
wilderness. In the lunette, an angel brings him a garment 
at the approach of his ministry. R. of the arch, the 
preaching of St. John the Baptist. 

Now, sit on the seat near the pierced door leading into 
the Piazzetta. On the wall opposite, the Baptism of Christ 
in Jordan : three angels on the bank, as usual in the con- 
ventional representation of this scene, hold the Saviour's 
garments. To the R. of this, on the wall leading into 
the font room, John saying, " I indeed baptise with 
water," etc. 

Over the main entra?tce to the Baptistery, opposite the 
font, **the daughter of Herodias dances before Herod ; on 
the R. her mother bids her to ask for the head of St. John 
the Baptist in a charger, which is symbolised by a pointing 
hand and by the princess already, prophetically as it were, 
bearing the head on her own as she dances. This is a 
piece of extreme symbolism ; study well this beautiful 
composition, admirable for its balance, for the vivid pose of 
the dancing princess, for the magnificent robes of the king, 
queen, and courtier, and for the delicious dishes and 
decorations of the table. On the R. a page brings in a dish 
of fruit. 

The last compartment of the history is in the lunette to the 
L. of the altar, and contains three subjects : (i) the behead- 
ing or decollation of St. John the Baptist, with a fine figure 
of the executioner sheathing his sword ; centre, the princess 
brings the head to the enthroned *Herodias, who sits like a 
Byzantine empress, a type of worldly pomp and power 
combined with wickedness ; to the R., the disciples, in 
Greek ecclesiastical costumes, place the body of the saint in 
the tomb. 

Beneath this mosaic is a carved stone head of St. John 
the Baptist, and also, lower down, let into the wall, the slab 



II.] BYZANTINE VENICE: ST. MARK'S 45 
on which he was beheaded, still stained red with the blood 
of his martyrdom. 

Now, examine in further detail the other decorations of 
the compartment containing the font. 

The cupola has in its centre a figure of Christ holding a 
scroll with the command, " Go into all the world and preach, 
baptising," etc. Beneath are figures of St. Mark and the 
Apostles obeying this command ; each Apostle is represented 
laying his hands on a naked convert in the font, while a 
sponsor stands by to the R. The inscriptions mention the 
places in which each baptised in the following order, 
beginning with St. Mark (who is over the doorway leading 
into the Baptistery, and is in dark blue robes) : St. Mark 
baptises in Alexandria ; St. John the Evangelist in Ephesus ; 
James Minor in Judea ; Philip in Phrygia ; Matthew in 
Ethiopia ; Simon in Egypt ; James in India ; Andrew in 
"Chaja" (Achaia) ; Peter in Rome; Bartholomew in India; 
Thaddeus in Mesopotamia ; Matthias in Palestine. In the 
pe?identives of this cupola are the *four Greek Fathers of 
the Church, very noble figures, Saints Athanasius, John 
Chrysostom, Gregory Nazianzen, and Basil (the last restored, 
but excellent), habited in picturesque Greek canonicals, and 
each holding a scroll inscribed with a Latin sentence, 
supposed to be translated from his writings, relating to 
baptismal regeneration. 

The cupola in the altar compartment is very dark, 
but nevertheless deserves careful study. Sit till your eyes 
are able to see it. It contains in its centre, Christ in Glory, 
ascending, surrounded by a circle of angels. 

In the outer circle are representatives of the nine choirs 
of angels. Immediately under Christ's feet is an eight- 
winged angel, and the next on the left is the first of the 
Hierarchies, the " Seraphim," an angel seated and holding 
a lighted torch. Looking to the right, the next is the 
eight-winged " Cherubim " holding a disk inscribed " Full- 
ness of Knowledge " (Scientie plenitudo). Following on 
to the right is " Thrones," an angel with crown and sceptre. 
" Dominations," dressed as a warrior, weighs a soul in the 



46 BYZANTINE VENICE: ST. MARK'S [n. 

balance with the book of deeds (?) in the other scale, and 
strikes with his spear at a black devil who is trying to pull 
down the scale. " Angels " lift up the dead still wrapped in 
grave clothes. " Archangels " present the soul, from whom 
the grave clothes are falling off. " Virtues " point to a 
skeleton lying beside a fountain of flame ; perhaps "Death 
cast into the lake of fire" (Rev. XX. 14). "Powers" bind 
Satan with a chain. "Princes," dressed as a warrior, is 
seated on a throne holding a sword. 

The whole of the Hierarchies represent Heaven, which 
is entered by the gate of the Sacrament of Baptism. 

In the pendentives are the four Latin Fathers, Gregory, 
Augustine, Jerome, Ambrose, with angels dictating to them. 
The Latin type of these saints should be contrasted with 
the Greek type of the Greek Fathers in the corresponding 
part of the central cupola. 

Behind the altar is an appropriate relief of the Baptism 
of Christ, with many accessories (Annunciation, Daniel, 
Zacharias, St. Mark, St. Nicholas, etc.) ; R. and L. of it, 
reliefs of St. George and St. Theodore, both mounted and 
slaying their respective dragons ; these two connect the 
chapel with the minor patrons of Venice. The altar itself 
consists of a huge block of rough granite, from which 
Christ preached to the Tyrians. It was brought from Tyre 
by Doge Domenico Michiel in 1126. 

On the under side of the arch between the altar com = 
partment and the font compartment are two old mosaics 
of the blessed Pietro Orseolo, Doge of Venice, and St. 
Isidore (whose connection with Doge Andrea Dandolo will 
be clearer later). Below are vile modern mosaics of the 
Blessed Anthony of Brescia, a disgrace to this noble 
chapel, as well as a feeble theatrical seventeenth-century 
figure of St. Theodore. 

In the place of honour, beneath the central cupola (with 
Christ sending forth 'the Apostles to baptise), stands the 
ancient font, supplied in the sixteenth century (1545) with 
a good Renaissance bronze cover ; the bronze statue of St. 
John the Baptist in its centre is by Francesco Segala, after 



II.] BYZANTINE VENICE: ST. MARK'S 47 

a design by Sansovino ; the bronze reliefs, with the four 
Evangelists, and scenes from the life of St. John the 
Baptist, are by Tiziano Minio of Padua, and Desiderio of 
Florence. This font, of course, forms the raison d'etre 
of the whole chapel. 

Opposite the main entrance door is the monument of 
Doge Andrea Dandolo, the donor, a splendid specimen 
of fourteenth-century sculpture. Above, the *recumbent 
figure of the Doge (d. 1354), serenely beautiful, under a 
graceful canopy ; beneath, on the sarcophagus, the Madonna 
and Child, and an Annunciation in two niches ; between 
them, two reliefs representing St. John the Evangelist in 
the cauldron of boiling oil, and the martyrdom of the 
Doge's personal patron, St. Andrew. The angels drawing- 
curtains, a reminiscence of the Pisan school, should also be 
noted. Andrea Dandolo was the last Doge buried in St. 
Mark's : after his time, the Serene Princes were buried at 
San Giovanni e Paolo, or at the Frari. 

The greater part of the small vaulted chamber between 
the font and the Cappella Zen has no direct reference to 
the subject of baptism. It is treated as a vestibule, and 
therefore appropriately gives the life of Christ befoi'e His 
baptism. The under side of the arch which leads to it has 
mosaics of the four Evangelists. On the vaulted roof in 
the centre, is a colossal head of Christ, represented as 
aged, after the later Byzantine fashion, and surrounded by 
prophets bearing rolls of prophecy. Beneath are Episodes 
of the Infancy : on the side towards the Cappella Zen, L., 
the Three Magi, represented as Three Kings (old, middle- 
aged, and young), come to Bethlehem to inquire of 
Herod ; R., the Three Kings adore the Child, with Joseph 
warned by an angel to fly into Egypt : both much restored 
and almost modern. (You will find these two scenes 
represented very similarly elsewhere. Note and compare 
all such subjects.) On the side towards the font, L., 
the Flight into Egypt, the latter symbolically represented 
by a city ; and R., the Massacre of the Innocents : in 
the lunettes at either end, two prophets. Near the door. 



43 BYZANTINE VENICE: ST MARK'S [n, 

R., is the tomb of Doge Giovanni Soranzo (1328) bearing 
his arms. 

On the wall to R. of the entrance to the chapel, is a very 
beautiful low *relief let into the wall. The cross is formed 
by four swords, at the foot are birds. 

Now pass through the doorway into the 

Cappella Zen. 

This beautiful little chapel, otherwise known as that of the 
Madonna della Scarpa, "Our Lady of the Slipper" (so 
called from her having given her bronze slipper to a poor 
votary, on which it was miraculously turned into gold), con- 
tains a series of very early mosaics (twelfth century). It was 
afterwards, in the sixteenth century, converted into a 
mausoleum for Cardinal Zen or Zeno (see below). I will 
begin by describing the original building with its decora- 
tions, and pass on later to the obtrusive Renaissance 
additions. 

In the half=dome, towards the outer Atrium, is a (re- 
stored) figure of Our Lady with her Greek monogram, and 
at the sides two (original) sombre and morose-faced Byzan- 
tine angels. Below, in niches, are the youthful beardless 
Christ, blessing, and four prophets in mosaic, alternating 
with four statues of prophets. 

These statues, carved in the round, are examples of the 
transition from the Romanesque to the Gothic style ; they 
are attributed to the middle of the thirteenth century. Note 
the transitional characteristics. The hair is not arranged in 
rigid lines and formal curls as in the twelfth century, nor is 
it in free natural locks as we find in the fourteenth century. 
The same applies to the drapery, which follows the lines of 
the figure, but somewhat stiffly and conventionally. There 
is no affectation in the pose, and there is sincerity and 
directness in expression. Each prophet stands under a 
niche ornamented with dentil moulding and supported by 
graceful little columns. It is supposed that the group of 
St. Mark and the angel outside over the central door is the 
work of the same sculptor, who appears to have been 



II.] BYZANTINE VENICE: ST. MARK'S 49 

influenced by the Antelami at Parma. ( Veniuri. storia dell 
Arte Ital.) 

On the vaulted roof, in the centre, is an early mosaic 
figure of the beardless Christ. Beneath, on either side, is 
the ** legend of St. Mark, whose body rested first in this 
chapel after its arrival in Venice. The series begins, above, 
on the wall of access from the Baptistery. (1) St. Mark 
writes his Gospel at the request of the brethren ; (2) he 
presents it to St. Peter, who orders it to be read in the 
church ; (3) he baptises at Aquileia, one of the chief mother- 
cities of Venice ; below, (4) as St. Mark is sailing from 
Aquileia to Rome, and passes this island (symbolised by 
water-plants to the R. below), an angel, flying from a very 
material blue heaven, announces to him that his Basilica 
shall be erected on this spot ; (5) St. Peter appoints 
St. Hermagoras to the Bishopric of Aquileia ; (6) St. Mark 
enters Egypt (symbolised by a gate), preaches there, and 
expels demons. Opposite, on the wall towards the Piazza : 
above — (1) an angel orders St. Mark in a dream at Pentapolis 
(so named to the L.) to sail to Alexandria ; (2) St. Mark in 
the ship on his way to Alexandria, symbolised by its cele- 
brated Pharos or lighthouse ; (3) St. Mark heals the cobbler 
St. Anianus of a wound made by his awl ; below — (4) 
St. Mark is arrested by the pagans (called " Saracens " in 
the inscription) while celebrating mass at the altar ; (5) he is 
dragged through Alexandria and beaten ; (6) he is buried by 
his disciples in a sarcophagus. In all these mosaics the 
symbolical character of the buildings (exterior or interior) 
should be noticed ; they are full of meaning. This most 
interesting series is a good epitome of the Venetian legend 
of St. Mark. I have said nothing of the exquisite decora- 
tive work, which the reader must, of course, notice for 
himself. 

In the arch beneath the mosaics last described is an old, 
much-damaged relief, with, below, the Nativity, Joseph, Our 
Lady, the Child in the manger, ox and ass, and shepherds ; 
above, the Flight into Egypt. Two beautiful reliefs are also 
let into the wall near the altar ; L., Byzantine Madonna 

E 



50 BYZANTINE VENICE: ST. MARK'S [il. 

and Child, with a Greek inscription, referring to the opening 
of an aqueduct at Constantinople by the Emperor Michael 
Pafeologus and his Empress Irene ; no doubt loot of Doge 
Enrico Dandolo's : R., an Archangel (one-half of an old 
Annunciation). Beneath them, two fine red marble lions, 
with a calf and child, like the griffins on the exterior ; prob- 
ably they once stood at the doorway. 

Passing on to the Renaissance additions, notice first in 
the centre the fine bronze *tomb of Cardinal Giovanni 
Battista Zen, or Zeno, nephew of Pope Paul II., who died 
in 1 501, and left the greater part of his immense fortune to 
the Republic of Venice. The Signory in gratitude erected 
this monument. The Cardinal, in bronze, in full pontificals, 
lies on a bronze sarcophagus, supported by figures said to 
represent Faith, Hope, Charity, Prudence, Pity, and Munifi- 
cence ; in the absence of any recognisable symbols, I do not 
pretend to decide which is which. The monument is the 
work of several artists, among them the Lombardi, Leopardi, 
and Camponato. 

The *altar stands under a bronze and marble Renaissance 
canopy, covering figures of Our Lady (with a gilded shoe in 
memory of the miracle) flanked by St. Peter (to represent 
the Cardinal's double connection with the see of Rome) and 
St. John the Baptist, his name-saint and personal patron. 
These figures are by P. G. Camponato; dated 1505. At 
the base, a relief of the Resurrection. On either side, poor 
decorative mosaics, with the Cardinal's hat and shield. (It 
is the ugly back of this altar which forms the discordant 
Renaissance pediment between the griffins on the S. 
fagade.) 

Give the Sacristan half a franc on leaving. 

I have only called attention to the most salient objects in 
these two beautiful and noble chapels, which the visitor 
should revisit more than once and examine at greater length 
for himself. 



II.] BYZANTINE VENICE: ST. MARK'S 51 

Main Church Again. 

Now, enter the north transept. Walk along its west or 
L.-hand Aisle till you reach a little chapel at the extreme 
end, closed by a low marble screen and an iron gate. This 
is the Cappella dei Mascoli, so called because it was the 
meeting-place of a Guild composed of men alone. It is 
dedicated to Our Lady, and its full title is Cappella delta 
Madonna dei Mascoli. 

The mosaics on the roof, by Michele Giambono, were 
begun in 1430, and form fine examples of fifteenth-century 
work ; they show the early Renaissance tendency, and are 
thus transitional between the mosaics of the Byzantine 
school on which we have hitherto for the most part concen- 
trated our attention, and those of the seventeenth century, 
some examples of which we have already examined on the 
exterior, while many more will occupy our time hereafter. 
The chapel being dedicated to Our Lady, the subjects repre- 
sented on its walls are naturally five of the chief incidents 
in her history. The series begins on the L. side of the roof 
with the Birth of Our Lady ; St. Anna, as always in this 
subject, is in bed ; St. Joachim, close by, superintends the 
washing of the infant ; to the R. are the usual women 
visitors. The whole takes place in a splendid late-Gothic 
semi-Renaissance palace. To the R. of this is the Presenta- 
tion of the Virgin in the Temple, which may be instructively 
compared with the famous Titian in the Academy ; L., 
St. Joachim and St. Anna ; the little Virgin mounts the 
steps and is received by the High Priest at the doors of a 
magnificent late-Gothic Temple, with Renaissance decora- 
tion. On the window wall, Annunciation, its component 
figures divided by the window. On the R. side of the roof; 
L. compartment, the Meeting of Mary and Elizabeth, which 
takes place (as always) under a splendid arcade, entirely 
Renaissance ; to the R., St. Zacharias is seated as a spec- 
tator. R. compartment, the Death of Our Lady ; her soul is 
received above by Christ, in a mandorla of glory. All the 
elements of the scenes are conventional. Study well these 



52 BYZANTINE VENICE: ST. MARK'S [11. 

five but, alas, very much restored mosaics as admirable 
examples of transitional workmanship, unfortunately tam- 
pered with. On the centre of the ceiling, Our Lady and the 
Child, with her royal ancestor, King David, and her chief 
prophet, Isaiah. The symbolism is full of veneration for 
the Blessed Virgin. 

The altar-piece consists of a statue of Our Lady, in a 
Gothic niche, between St. Mark and St. John the Evangelist 
— the latter being Our Lady's adopted son, and also the 
patron of the N. Transept. 

The ce?itral arch of the arcade (supporting the gallery) 
in the Aisle which lies just outside this chapel, has on its 
under side good mosaics of St. Justina and St. Marina. On 
the pier between the chapel and the main transept is a fine 
Byzantine relief of Our Lady. Over the door of access 
from the Atrium into this transept is a figure of St. John 
the Evangelist : this entrance being known as St. John's 
door — Porta di San Giovanni. The mosaics of the North 
Dome (best seen hereafter from above) have also reference 
to the history of this Evangelist, displaced to make room for 
the growing cult of the Madonna. 

We now enter the 

Chapel of St. Isidore. 

The Cappella di Sant' Isidoro is entered from the L. or 
N. Transept. (See plan.) Ask the Sacristan, who for a few 
sous will admit you. 

The entrance doorway is framed in marble, with symbolical 
carvings at the base of the jambs. Notice also a spirited 
little bas=relief carved on the end of the low marble bench 
to the right of the door. It represents the famous mediaeval 
allegory of human life. A young man lies asleep in a tree 
whose stem is being gnawed by two rats. The tree is the 
life of every man, the rats are the hours of the day and the 
night. 

The story of this chapel is best told in the words of the 
quaint inscription over the altar, which I translate in full as 
follows : — 



II.] BYZANTINE VENICE; ST. MARK'S 53 

" The body of the blessed Isidore is enclosed in this 
present sarcophagus. It was brought from Chios by the 
Lord Domenico Michiel, famous Doge of the Venetians, in 
the year 11 25, and remained laid by privately in this church 
of St. Mark until the beginning of the building of this 
chapel, erected under his name ; which was begun during 
the Dukedom of the Lord Andrea Dandolo, famous Doge 
of the Venetians, and in the time of the noble gentlemen, 
Lords Marco Loredan and Giovanni Dolfin, Procurators of 
the church of St. Mark, and was completed under the 
Dukedom of the Lord Giovanni Gradenigo, famous Doge of 
the Venetians, and in the time of the noble gentlemen, 
the Lords Marco Loredan, Nicolo Lion, and Giovanni 
Dolfin, Procurators of the church of St. Mark, in the year 
1355, on the 10th day of the month of July." It thus owes 
its origin to the same great Doge who built and decorated 
the Baptistery. 

The chapel is extremely dark, and can only be tolerably 
seen on a very bright day. 

The Altar is occupied by the sarcophagus in which rest 
the remains of the Saint. He lies in sculptured effigy on its 
lid ; a good piece of sculpture. The front of the sarco- 
phagus is decorated with a figure of Christ, and of SS. John 
Baptist and another, unidentified. The two reliefs represent, 
to the L., the Saint being dragged by horses over the ground, 
and to the R. his decapitation. This is a fine work, coeval 
with the erection of the chapel. Notice also the angel with 
the censer, the beautiful symbolical designs on the under 
side of the arch, and the usual Annunciation in the spandrils. 

The walls of the chapel are decorated with particularly 
handsome slabs of coloured marble and other stones. The 
"^mosaics are all of a peculiar type, quite different in design 
and technique from those of the contemporary Baptistery, 
erected by the same Doge, Andrea Dandolo : those of the 
Baptistery seem to me to have been executed by Byzantine 
artists (or artists thoroughly trained in the Byzantine school), 
while these seem rather like the first attempts of indifferent 
native workmen, feeling their way doubtfully. They have 



54 BYZANTINE VENICE: ST. MARK'S [n. 

lost the simple dignity and repose of earlier treatment 
without having attained to more modern freedom and sense 
of action. Nevertheless, they are so excellent in technical 
setting that hardly a stone of the mosaics has been mis- 
placed, and we therefore see them at the present day essen- 
tially as they were left in the fourteenth century. 

The lunette over the Altar has a figure of Christ seated ; 
to the L. is St. Mark (church), to the R., St. Isidore (chapel). 
Beneath it is the inscription already translated. The lunette 
opposite this one shows Our Lady and the Child, with, L., 
St. John the Baptist, and R., St. Nicholas in Greek ecclesias- 
tical costume — these (with St. Mark opposite) are the patron 
saints of the three Procurators mentioned in the inscription. 

On the ceiling, towards the wall of e?itrance, is the 
History of St. Isidore, most quaint and interesting. Above, 
he sets sail for Chios, with his companion Amenio ; all the 
figures are named in the inscriptions ; then, he arrives at 
Chios, where he is hospitably entertained by Valeria and 
her daughter Afra ; St. Isidore and Amenio give thanks for 
their safe landing ; St. Isidore reasons with, and casts out, a 
devil ; Valeria and Afra are converted by his preaching ; he 
baptises Afra, nude, in the font. Below : " How Numerianus 
sentenced St. Isidore"; observe the Roman soldiers with 
their shields ; " How he was placed in a burning fiery 
furnace " ; note the wood-bearers : then, he is dragged at 
horses' tails over the ground, the blood spurting out more 
copiously than artistically ; finally, he is beheaded. 

The mosaics of the wi?idow wall (seen with the greatest 
difficulty except in a bright light) show the bringing of the 
body of St. Isidore from Chios to this chapel. At the 
opposite side from the Altar, below, the entombment of 
St. Isidore ; above, Doge Domenico Michiel arriving at 
Chios ; then, a private priest, Cerbanus, steals the body of 
St. Isidore for his personal use, from the sarcophagus : 
notice the horrid realism of the shrivelled corpse and skull 
of the Saint : the Doge reprehends Cerbanus for the theft, 
and sends him on shore ; the body is taken to the fleet with 
great respect ; below, near the window, it is carried into 



II.] BYZANTINE VENICE: ST. MARK'S ^ 

St. Mark's with due solemnity. Between the windows is a 
figure of St. George the Martyr. If you can get light 
enough to study these curious and unique works, the re- 
markable details will well repay you. 
Now return into the Northern Transept. 

Chapel of Our Lady. 

The East Aisle of the Transept (formerly the Chapel of 
St. John) has been railed off as the Chapel of Our Lady, 
who is at the present day (I speak of visible facts only) the 
central object of veneration in the whole Basilica. The 
entire space in front of this chapel is constantly thronged 
with votaries from morning till night, under conditions 
which make it difficult to examine the works of art it con- 
tains without grave indelicacy. Look at it cursorily. 

The central object is a great canopy or baldacchino, 
enshrining a ^miraculous portrait of Our Lady with the 
Child, deeply venerated by the Venetians, and the most 
revered object in the whole city. It is said to have been 
painted by St. Luke the Evangelist, and is certainly an 
ancient Byzantine work, not later in date than the eighth 
century. It was brought to Venice in the thirteenth cen- 
tury, and was transported to this altar in 1618, when the 
former dedication to St. John was altered, and Our Lady 
made patroness in his stead. 

During the greater part of the week this portrait is 
hidden from the eyqs of the faithful behind handsome 
bronze folding doors, which contain, above, a facsimile of 
the miraculous image in relief, and below, the figures of 
St. Mark (patron of the church) and St. John the Evangelist 
(former patron of the chapel). These doors are opened, 
however, on Saturdays, when the picture itself, blackened 
with age, may be seen (not well) from a little distance 
through an opera-glass. It is half obscured by necklets and 
other rich ex void's. In character, it seems to be merely an 
ordinary Greek icon, much deteriorated by age. The chapel 
itself is also filled with ugly votive offerings, but it possesses 
some admirable sculptured reliefs (L. two Saints in niches, 



56 BYZANTINE VENICE: ST. MARK'S [11. 

r. the Madonna and Child). I do not describe the various 
objects in this very holy place at length, however as it is 
not practicable to scrutinise any of them without causing 
just annoyance to the numerous worshippers, for whose 
sake it is well to remember the church exists. English 
tourists are often culpably wanting in respect to this holy 
object. 

Between the Chapel of Our Lady and the Vestibule of the 
Chapel of St. Peter (to the R.) stands an altar of St. Paul, 
surmounted by a statue of the Apostle, bearing a sword 
(see plan). An inscription states that it was erected under 
"the famous and pious lord and Doge, Cristoforo Moro " 
(1462). 

Just beyond this altar is the Vestibule of the Chapel of 
St. Peter, which latter is railed off by a handsome screen, 
surmounted by five statues (about 1396), the work of the 
first great Venetian sculptors, the brothers Massegne. The 
figures represent, in the centre, the Madonna and Child ; at 
the sides, four great women saints connected with Venice — 
Mary Magdalen, Cecilia, Helena, and Margaret. Pass this 
chapel for the present without entering it beyond the screen. 

To your R., as you face this screen, is one of the two 
magnificent octagonal Pulpits. This one is double, or in 
two stories. The exquisite marble-work of its staircase 
should be closely examined. So should all its architectural 
features. It is one of the finest things in the Basilica. 

South Transept. 
The South Transept has in its corner arcades at the 
West End (where it joins the Nave) good early mosaic 
figures of saints, mostly named ; among them that of *St. 
Catharine is particularly beautiful. Close by is a fine relief 
of Our Lady and the Child. Its West Aisle ends in a 
somewhat Cairene door, leading to the Treasury (omit for 
the present) ; above it is a pretty mosaic of angels holding 
the sign of the Cross. Over the South Door of the main 
part of the Transept is a mosaic of St. Mark : this door 
leads direct into the Doge's Palace. 



II.] BYZANTINE VENICE: ST. MARK'S $7 

The East Aisle of this Transept is divided off (like the 
Chapel of Our Lady) into a Chapel of the Holy Sacra- 
ment, where the consecrated Host is now exhibited : it was 
formerly dedicated to St. Leonard. (Hence the mosaics 
above it.) It has also good mosaics on the under side of 
the arch supporting its gallery. 

Between it and the vestibule of the next chapel is the 
altar of St. James, containing his statue, and answering 
to that of St. Paul, opposite. 

The west compartment (Vestibule of St. Clement) con- 
tains the stairs which descend to the Crypt (closed) : on its 
L. side is the second of the handsome octagonal ambones, or 
Pulpits. At the base of the steps which go up to this pulpit 
are two fine ^decorative reliefs of peacocks. Near the steps 
to the Crypt, observe a particularly beautiful relief of Our 
Lady and the Child ; above her, on the arch, a quaint 
mosaic of that rather mythical embodiment of boitrgeois 
beneficence, St. Uombono of Cremona, engaged in the dis- 
tribution of charity ; he is balanced on the other side by St. 
Boniface. Many of these minor saints are patrons of neigh- 
bouring towns with which Venice had commercial relations. 

The screen which rails off the Chapel of St. Clement 
(pass it by for the present) is like the one which balances it 
on the N. side ; it also has five excellent statues by the 
Massegne. The figures represent, in the centre, Our Lady 
with the Child : at the sides, four other great women saints 
— Christina, Clara, Catharine, Agnes. 

Understand the arrangement of these two transepts, and 
of the Central Area of the church between them, before you 
proceed to the examination of the Eastern Area, with its 
three apses. This central area, you may note, has mosaics 
of the whole Gospel history — a point which will lead up to 
the final comprehension of the general arrangement. The 
series begins on the E. arch (arch of the Presbytery), is 
continued on the N. and then on the S. side, goes on then 
to the W. arch, with the Passion and Resurrection, and 
ends in the Central Dome with the Ascension. 



S3 BYZANTINE VENICE: ST MARK'S [il. 

The Presbytery. 

You may now go on to inspect the Presbytery, or Main 
Apse, which is so exceptionally rich in objects of interest 
that I can only briefly call attention to a very few of 
them. 

The Presbytery is separated from the Central Area by a 
rood=Ioft, or screen, of rich oriental columns, supporting 
an architrave which bears in its centre the Crucifix (1393), 
with the symbols of the four Evangelists at the corners. 
L. and R. of this crucifix are Our Lady, and St. John the 
Evangelist, in their conventional places. The other twelve 
statues are those of St. Mark and of the eleven remaining 
Apostles. All these are by the Massegne (1393, named 
and dated), and are admirable examples of Venetian 
sculpture in the transition of the Gothic to the Renaissance 
style. Form your idea of the beginnings of the Venetian 
Renaissance by studying these figures with those of the 
women saints on the lateral screens. 

The arch over the rood-loft has mosaics from designs by 
Tintoretto, with episodes from the infancy and ministry of 
the Saviour. 

Pass through the screen and enter the first compart = 
ment of the Presbytery. The only important objects here 
are six reliefs in bronze, by Sansovino, representing miracles 
of St. Mark, let into the parapet of the little singi?ig 
galleries to the R. and L. 

The Inner Presbytery is locked ; the Sacristan will 
open it for you (a few sous). 

In the centre, in the great place of honour, stands the 
principal object of the whole church, the shrine. This 
holy of holies is the High Altar, containing within it (as an 
inscription at the back testifies) the actual body of the 
Evangelist St. Mark, whose miraculous preservation and 
discovery after the fire we saw depicted in the mosaics of 
the South Transept. 

The High Altar ; in accordance with its importance, is 
covered by a rich canopy or baldacchino, of verd-antique, 



II.] BYZANTINE VENICE: ST MARK'S 59 
supported at the angles by four * carved pillars in cipollino, 
of extraordinarily rich and intricate workmanship. 

The pillars are of different date. The two supporting 
the front are believed to have been brought from Pola in 
I stria to Venice in 1243, when that city was taken by the 
Venetians. The symbolical treatment of some of the sub- 
jects, the style of the vesture and other particulars, make it 
probable that the carving is by Italian workmen in the first 
half of the sixth century. 

The two back pillars are the work of some imitator of the 
eleventh century, a careful student of early Christian sarco- 
phagi, and perhaps the sculptor of the architrave of the side 
door to the left of the western facade. ( Venturi. storia dell 
Arte Ital.) The work is ruder than the front pillars, and 
there is none of the sentiment of the triumph of Chris- 
tianity. 

The first pillar, to the L. at the back (N.E.), tells the story 
of the Blessed Virgin, from the rejection of her father 
Joachim in the Temple to her marriage with Joseph : the 
scenes are those usual in this set of subjects ; the names 
suffice to identify them. The second pillar, on the L. in 
front (N.W.), has the life of Our Lord from the Annunciation 
to the miracle of the loaves and fishes. 

The third pillar, diagonally opposite to the last, at the R. 
behind (S.E.), has the same history from the episode of the 
young man who wishes to bury his father to the cure of 
the leper. The fourth pillar, to the R. in front (S.W.), con- 
tinues the story of the Passion to the Ascension and Christ 
in glory. (Fully to describe the subjects, over a hundred 
in number, thus represented, is beyond my space : nor do 
I recommend any, save advanced students with abundant 
time, to tackle them. They are hard to make out, but well 
deserve the attention of those who already know the art of 
the period from ivories, etc.) On the summit of the 
canopy are two figures of Our Saviour, front and back ; at 
the corners, the four Evangelists. A wonderful work, all 
told, of immense interest. 

The raised back of the altar is formed by the famous and 



60 BYZANTINE VENICE: ST. MARK'S [n 

exquisite ** Pala d'Oro, or golden altar-piece. This, the 
most magnificent existing example of the early mediaeval 
jeweller's craft, is covered by a curtain on ordinary occasions, 
and is only publicly exposed for a few days at Easter. It 
may, however, be viewed (though not satisfactorily), from 
12 to 2 daily, for a payment of 25 c. per person. (Inquire 
of the Sacristan.) 

A full description of this magnificent early work, and of 
the subjects represented on it, would extend to twenty or 
thirty pages ; I must therefore content myself here with the 
briefest indications of the general treatment. 

The upper part (or first broad band) of the Pala d'Oro is 
the oldest. It was ordered from Constantinople in 976 
(after the fire which destroyed the first church) by Doge 
Pietro Orseolo ; its whole workmanship is entirely Byzan- 
tine, its inscriptions are in Greek, and it bears little reference 
to Venice or Venetian ideas. It is a monument of oriental 
Christian iconography. 

The ce?itral plaque of this upper band consists of a figure 
of the Archangel Michael (very much venerated in the 
Greek Church) between a pair of six-winged seraphs, his 
name being marked in Greek letters. The three plaques on 
either side consist of scenes from the Gospel History and its 
sequel. Beginning on the L. these are : the Entry into 
Jerusalem ; the Resurrection (so inscribed in Greek, but in 
reality Christ releasing Adam and Eve from Hades) ; and 
the Crucifixion : this last plaque must originally have pre- 
ceded the previous one, and the two must have been trans- 
posed in subsequent alterations made by ignorant western 
workmen. R. of the central figure come the Ascension, 
with the Madonna, angels, and Apostles below, Christ rising 
above ; the Descent of the Holy Ghost ; and the Death of 
the Virgin, whose soul, like a little child, Christ receives. 
These plaques are all richly covered with jewels, and ha\v 
several small medallions of saints, mostly oriental, and 
bearing little or no relation to Venice. 

The lower part of the Pala d'Oro consists to a large 
extent of separate gold altar-pieces, some of which were 



ii.] BYZANTINE VENICE: ST. MARK'S 61 

ordered by Doge Ordelafo Falier in 1105, while others were 
probably looted from Constantinople after the capture of the 
city by Doge Enrico Dandolo in 1204. These plaques have 
been several times altered and remade by Venetian gold- 
smiths, as the inscriptions testify, so that part of the work 
here is Byzantine and part native. This composite lower 
portion was joined to the upper, in all probability, about 
1345. It consists, as a whole, of a central design (whose 
main compartment contains a Byzantine figure of Christ 
blessing, with medallions of the four Evangelists), and of 
minor episodes. Under this central design are two Latin 
verse inscriptions, giving part of the history of the Pala. 
Between these inscriptions stands a graceful Byzantine figure 
of Our Lady, with her Greek monogram. The crowned 
figures to the R. and L. of this Madonna are peculiarly in- 
teresting. That to the L. has a Latin inscription to the 
effect that it represents Ordelafo Falier, by the grace of God 
Duke of the Venetians : that to the R. has a Greek inscrip- 
tion stating that it represents Irene, most pious Empress- 
As a matter of fact, however, the Doge's face is a later sub- 
stitution for that of the Emperor John Comnenus, husband 
of this very Empress Irene. The original altar-piece at 
Constantinople, from which this portion has been stolen, 
must therefore have been presented by the Emperor and 
Empress to St. Sophia : the Venetians must afterwards have 
altered the figure and inscription to suit their own dead 
Doge, but most ungallantly left him faced, not by his own 
Dogaressa, but by the Byzantine Empress. 

The other designs on this portion of the Pala consist 
mostly of figures of saints, etc., the upper row comprising 
adoring angels, the second row the twelve Apostles, and the 
Jiird row prophets, named for the most part in Latin letters. 

Many minor subjects are comprised in the Pala, but these 
are as many as the casual visitor is likely to examine. The 
Lnost interesting of the minor subjects detail the life and 
miracles of St. Mark, and the transference of his holy body 
to Venice. This set is clearly of native workmanship, and 
bears none but Latin inscriptions ; it resembles in part the 



62 BYZANTINE VENICE: ST MARK'S [n. 

mosaics in the church. The whole Pala, above and below, 
bristles with jewels of every description. 

The front of the altar, also affixed on state occasions 
only, is of silver gilt. 

This altar of St. Mark, containing the actual body of the 
Evangelist, must be regarded as the focus of the entire 
building, towards which all the rest converges. It was in 
mediaeval times the most cherished possession of Venice. To 
its L. is now the Patriarchal Throne ; on either side are 
the stalls of the Canons, brought here when St. Mark's was 
erected into a cathedral in 1807. 

Behind the high altar stands a second altar (of the Holy 
Cross) supported by six beautiful columns, two of them of 
verd-antique, two of African marble, and two of alabaster, 
semi-transparent ; these last, spirally twisted, are said to 
have come from Solomon's Temple. 

Having thus examined cursorily the chief objects on the 
floor of the presbytery, you may proceed to notice the 
mosaics of its upper portion. 

The great Eastern Dome has in its centre an exquisite 
early mosaic figure of the * beardless Christ, holding what 
seems to be a roll of prophecy. Beneath Him is a figure of 
Our Lady, to the extreme E. ; next to whom are her royal 
and prophetic ancestors, kings David and Solomon. The 
other figures are those of the prophets who prophesied of 
Christ — namely, Isaiah, Jeremiah, Daniel, Abdias, Habak- 
kuk, Hosea, Jonah, Zephaniah, Haggai, Zechariah, and 
Malachi, each holding a scroll inscribed with words of their 
prophecies. (These words — read them if you know Latin- 
are always of great importance in understanding the special 
meaning of the figures.) In the pendentives are the 
symbols (six-winged) of the four Evangelists, who showed 
forth Christ's works to Christendom. 

The small arches on either side of these pendentives have 
exquisite decorative work, with the mystic Lamb and other 
minor figures. 

The apse is occupied by a late but very fine seated figure 
of Christ, dated 1505. This is the terminal object of the 



II.] BYZANTINE VENICE: ST. MARK'S 63 

whole church ; it is seen in front of you from the main 
portal at the moment of entering. 

Beneath this mosaic, between the windows, are four 
figures more directly connected with the dedication of the 
church and with the holy Body which lies within it. To the 
L. is St. Nicholas, commercial patron of Venice ; next to 
him is St. Peter, who hands St. Mark the Gospel, to which 
he has given his approbation ; third comes St. Mark himself, 
who receives the book of his Gospel from St. Peter and 
hands it on to Hermagoras, Bishop of Aquileia ; fourth is 
Hermagoras in the act of receiving it. The last three of 
these mosaics, thus prominently placed under the apsidal 
figure of Our Saviour, represent the importance of St. Mark 
both as Evangelist and as first preacher of the Gospel in 
these estuaries. They may be regarded as symbolical of 
the consecration of Mark by Peter, and of Hermagoras by 
Mark, and thus of the direct descent of the Venetian 
Patriarchate from the first Bishop of Aquileia, from the 
holy Evangelist, and from the Prince of the Apostles. The 
puzzling presence of St. Nicholas in this group is explained 
by the Latin verses above, which state that the bodies of 
these four saints rest in Venetian soil, and that on them the 
Venetian people chiefly trust for welfare and protection. 
These verses are of such fundamental importance in the 
scheme of the church, that, contrary to my usual custom, 
I transcribe them in full, in the original rhyming Latin : — 

Quatuor hos jure fuit hie prseponere cure (curse), 
Corporibus quorum proscellit honos Venetorum. 
His viget, his crescit, terraque manque intescit : 
Integer et totus sit ab his numquamque relictus. 

The last line does not rhyme, and has obviously been ill 
restored : " remotus " in the last word has been suggested 
as the original reading ; but I think the old verse was really 
" Integer et tutus sit ab his, nunquamque solutus." The 
order of the figures is comprehensible if we notice that the 
central pair are Peter and Mark, the outer pair Nicholas 
and Hermagoras. 



64 BYZANTINE VENICE: ST MARK'S [n. 

Only from this Presbytery, and from the two Apsidal 
Chapels we have next to visit, can the ordinary traveller 
obtain a sight of the * early mosaics in the two great 
Arches above the Apsidal Chapels, R. and L. of the sarco- 
phagus of St. Mark. (The organ-gallery above, from which 
these most interesting works are best seen, is unfortunately 
closed to the public, except by special permission, accorded 
to all whose claim is properly presented to the courteous 
officials.) I will therefore describe their subjects here, 
leaving the reader to find out for himself the best points of 
view which the light and the conditions of the moment 
render possible. In any case, they are hard to decipher. 

The great arch to the L. of the High Altar (N. wall ot 
Presbytery) stands over the Chapel of St. Peter, the spiritual 
father of St. Mark, and therefore represents the life and 
martyrdom of that saint, and of his spiritual son, the Evan- 
gelist. L. side (W.), above, St. Peter ordains St. Mark as 
bishop ; St. Mark heals a leper ; St. Mark baptises con- 
verts ; below, Rome (as shown by the inscription in the 
arcade) ; St. Peter ordains St. Hermagoras as first Bishop 
of Aquileia ; St. Mark takes his Gospel to Alexandria (so 
marked in the arcade) ; St. Hermagoras baptises the people 
of Aquileia ; these mosaics thus directly connect Mark and 
Peter with Venetian Christianity. R. side (E.), beginning 
below, St. Mark, warned by an angel, goes to Alexandria ; 
he heals the cobbler Anianus ; above, he preaches the 
Gospel ; he baptises. 

The wall beneath this arch continues the history, though 
not, it seems to me, in chronological order : Herod orders 
the imprisonment of St. Peter ; the angel delivers him from 
prison. The martyrdom of St. Mark ; his disciples bury his 
body. 

The great arch to the R. of the High Altar (S. wall of 
Presbytery), stands over the chapel of St. Clement, and has 
one of the earliest, and certainly the most interesting 
** mosaic in the whole Basilica. These represent the history 
of the body of St. Mark after his death, and its direct con- 
nection with the city of Venice. To the L., above, is seen a 



II.] BYZANTINE VENICE: ST. MARK'S 65 

single arch with the word " Alexandria " ; R. of this the 
priest Theodore and the monk Stauracius, Alexandrian 
Christians, are seen confiding the body of St. Mark to the 
care of Tribunus and Rusticus, Venetian traders then at 
Alexandria ; still further R., Tribunus and Rusticus (all the 
figures being fully named) carry the body of the saint in a 
basket for embarkation ; the inscription above naively con- 
fesses that this is an act of theft — it runs : Mar cum furan- 
tur : Kanzir hi vocifera?ilur, " They steal the body of 
Mark ; they cry as they come, Kanzir," i.e. pork. Below, 
they hide the body in the sails of the ship, while Theodore 
and Stauracius stand by in order to deceive the Mohammedan 
Custom-house officials. On the wall between the two halves 
of the arch, the departure of the bark from Alexandria : its 
arrival at Venice. On the R. side of the arch (again) is seen, 
above, the miracle of the storm, in which the ship is nearly 
driven on the islands of the lagoon, marked by name, 
estuarie ; St. Mark appears and warns the sailors of their 
danger in another quaint rhyming hexameter. Beneath 
this, the Venetian people, represented by the Doge, the 
senate, the priests, and the laity, joyfully receive the holy 
body. These mosaics are in the same simple and direct style 
as those telling the same story which once existed on the 
facade of the church, and which can still be seen in Bellini's 
interesting picture in the Academy. They are among the 
most precious relics of early art in Venice. I cannot, how- 
ever, reduce the series to any quite intelligible order. 

Visit the Presbytery often, till you feel that you have ex- 
amined its contents thoroughly. There are many other 
objects worth note in it, which the necessary limits of a Guide 
Book compel me to pass over. 

The Apsidal Chapel to the L« (N). is that of St. Peter, 
whose connection with St. Mark I have already sufficiently 
pointed out. It is very dark, except on the brightest days, 
and has on its altar (which contains relics of St. Peter) and 
on its apse, figures of its patron, the Prince of the Apostles. 
It is, however, one of the best positions for seeing portions 
of the mosaics, already mentioned, on the wall and arch 

F 



66 BYZANTINE VENICE: ST. MARK'S [n. 

above (which bear reference to the life of St. Peter, and to 
the life and martyrdom of his follower, St. Mark), especially 
those of the history of Peter just overhead. 

[A door of exit in this Chapel gives access to a portion of 
the exterior not elsewhere seen, with curious fragments 
of ancient sculpture embedded in the wall. You can 
proceed hence to San Zaccariaand the Rivadegli Schiavoni.] 

The Apsidal Chapel to the R. (S.) is that of St. 
Clement. It contains in its apse a mosaic figure of the 
saint to whom it is dedicated. Its altar has a relief of the 
Madonna and Child, between St. Peter and St. Clement ; 
beneath this, St. Nicholas, to whom St. Andrew presents his 
namesake, Doge Andrea Gritti (the donor), balanced by 
St. James (whose altar is just outside). An inscription 
states that the altar contains relics, not only of St. Clement, 
but also of Blaise, Stephen, Hermagoras, Fortunatus, 
Cornelius, Cyprian, Pancras, Hippolytus, Denis, Cyril, 
Sergius, and Bacchus, some of whose figures you may find 
among the surrounding mosaics. This is a good station 
for observing portions of mosaics (already described) on the 
arch above, representing the transference of the body of 
St. Mark from Alexandria to Venice. The wall has episodes 
from the life of St. Clement (Sisinnius struck blind because 
he tries to see Mass, being a pagan, etc.). 

A door on the R. in this Chapel (closed) gives direct access 
to the court of the Doge's Palace, and was the portal by 
which the Most Serene Prince usually entered the Basilica. 
Close to it, therefore, is an inscription in Latin verse, giving 
plain and by no means courtier-like advice to the Doge by 
name as to his spiritual and temporal duties. 

To examine the mosaics on the upper walls and domes it 
is necessary to go up to 

The Gallery. 
(Entrance from the Atrium, at the left side of the central 
doorway. Fee, 50 centimes per person.) 

Mount the steep staircase and go first to the Exterior 
Gallery. Here you can observe well the four famous 



II.] BYZANTINE VENICE: ST. MARK'S 67 

Bronze Horses, still covered with abundant traces of gilding. 
From this point also you can note the sculpture on the 
archivolt of the main arch, with eight figures of patriarchs 
and prophets, named on the pedestals. 

Proceed first to the R. (with a good view over the Piazza), 
and turn the corner towards the little Piazza dei Leoni, 
where you can more closely observe the Gothic figures on 
the pinnacles of the North Facade. They are arranged in 
a somewhat odd order (beginning from the L.), of Hope, 
Temperance, Faith, Prudence, Charity, the two cardinal 
virtues being thus interposed between the three theological. 
This is also the best point of view for the decorative detail 
(foliage, prophets, etc.) of the Gothic additions. 

Next, proceed past the Horses again, along the West 
Front, as far as the S.W. corner, over the little portico, 
which gives an admirable view of the South Facade, with 
its Byzantine pillars, pierced stone-work, and Gothic addi- 
tions. Excellent outlook on the Piazzetta and the granite 
columns. As you are passing along the West Front, on 
your way back, observe a little mosaic of St. Nicholas in a 
niche, bearing the name of its artist, Ettore Locatelli (about 
1605). 

Now, re=enter the church. 

From the gallery we see how the quality of the interior 
gains from the broad unbroken surfaces of Byzantine con- 
struction. The contours of the vaults and domes are seldom 
seen as complete wholes. The curves of one surface pass 
athwart the curves of another, leaving to the imagination a 
sense of space which adds vastly to the impressiveness of 
the building. 

The great arch, by which you enter, has on its under side 
sixteenth and seventeenth century frescoes in the centre 
(after a cartoon by Tintoretto), representing the Last Judg- 
ment, Our Lord between the Blessed Virgin and St. John ; 
beneath, the Cross enthroned among the instruments of the 
Passion ; Adam and Eve and Cherubim adoring. Below, 
south side, half of the Apostles, on clouds ; then, under 
them, Paradise, with the Penitent Thief in the lower right- 



68 BYZANTINE VENICE: ST. MARK'S [n. 

hand corner ; north side, above, the rest of the Apostles ; 
below, the condemned, with Judas hanging himself, just 
opposite the Penitent Thief. 

The arch next to this, and a little higher in level, has the 
Vision of St. John in the Apocalypse, with St. John sleeping ; 
the Seven Golden Candlesticks ; the Angels of the Seven 
Churches of Asia ; St. Michael and the Dragon ; the Supper 
of the Lamb ; the Woman clothed with the Sun, and other 
episodes of the Apocalyptic Vision ; all by the Zuccati. 
The order and arrangement of all these mosaics have 
been already explained (see p. 37). 

Return back towards the head of the stairs by which you 
entered, and proceed by the outer gallery of the North 
Aisle. Stand above the long north arcade, in order to view 
the first dome— the Dome of the West Arm or Nave. 
Its subject is the Descent of the Holy Ghost. In the 
centre, the Spirit descends as a dove upon the twelve 
Apostles ; below, between the sixteen windows, are various 
races, Parthians, Medes, Elamites, etc., represented each by 
one man and one woman in what the mosaicist believed to 
be the costume of their country ; all are listening to the 
Apostles speaking to them in their own tongues. Beneath, 
in the pendentives, are four majestic angels, singing the 
" Holy, Holy, Holy ! " All these are in the style of the 
thirteenth or fourteenth century. 

This arcade is also the best point from which to observe 
(with an opera-glass) the beautiful decorative sculpture on 
the parapet of the gallery opposite. 

In the arch behind you (North Wall of the N. Aisle), 
above the lovely youthful Byzantine Christ, is a representa- 
tion of Paradise, of the seventeenth century ; over it, the 
trial and martyrdoms of St. Peter and St. Paul, after car- 
toons by Palma. I do not attempt to give all the subjects of 
these later mosaics, partly because of their number, and 
partly also because they are almost always self-explanatory, 
or sufficiently explained by their Latin inscriptions. 

Continue on to the small compartment in the angle 
between the Nave and the North Transept. This is 



ii.] BYZANTINE VENICE: ST. MARK'S 69 

the best point of view for one-half of the great arch 
between the Western and Central Domes. It represents, 
below, the Kiss of Judas, and Christ wearing the Crown of 
Thorns ; Pilate bears a roll with the question, " Shall I 
crucify your King ? " answered by the Jew to the L., " Crucify 
Him!" Above, the Crucifixion, with Our Lady, St. John, 
the Maries, and Roman soldiers ; Longinus piercing the 
side, etc. In the centre of the arch, the Maries at the 
Sepulchre. (The remainder of this arch is best seen from 
the opposite gallery.) 

This station is also one of the most satisfactory for 
observing the great ** CENTRAL DOME ; its subject is the 
Ascension. In the ce?itre, Christ is borne aloft in a firma- 
ment by four angels ; beneath, second tier, over the altar 
arch, stands *Our Lady, dark-robed, a most beautiful figure, 
attended by the two angels who say, " Why stand ye 
here ? " etc. All round are the twelve Apostles, divided by 
trees of various patterns to symbolise the Mount of Olives. 
The rhyming Latin verses are excellent. Beneath, third 
tier, between the windows, are the Virtues and Beatitudes 
(beginning to the R. of Our Lady) in the following order : 
Temperance, Prudence, Humility, Kindliness, Penitence ; 
(to the L. of Our Lady) Courage or Fortitude, tearing open 
the lion's jaw. The other figures will be better observed 
from other standpoints. In the pendent ives are the four 
Evangelists writing their Gospels ; beneath them, figures of 
the Four Rivers of Paradise, named as Gyon, Euphrate, 
Tygre, Fison. (Recollect that on the main facade the 
Rivers of Paradise similarly stand beneath and symbolise 
the four Evangelists.) This grand central dome is well 
worthy of the noble position it occupies, 

At this point notice the four Angels (gilded) at the 
springing of the arches which carry the Dome over the 
crossing. These statues are said to be the work of Byzan- 
tine craftsmen, and to have been brought from Constanti- 
nople probably at the same time as the bronze horses on the 
facade. Three of the Angels stand stiffly, their feet planted 
firmly and somewhat wide apart. The fourth, blowing a 



?o BYZANTINE VENICE: ST. MARK'S [h. 

trumpet, has a freer pose, with one foot raised. These 
dignified figures show how Byzantine rigour could be 
united with a certain quality of Hellenic grace. 

Now, proceed along the outer gallery of the North 
Transept. The arch overhead tells the story of the Life 
of Our Lady (from the apocryphal P7'oievangelio?i) in 
thirteenth-century mosaics (see Mrs. Jameson, Legends of 
the Mado?ina). The centre is occupied by a fine Greek 
cross. The story begins on the L.-hand side, and runs 
round on the icpper level first. L. side, above, L. compart- 
ment, St. Zacharias enters the Temple to place the wands of 
the various suitors, the budding of one of which will 
miraculously determine the Virgin's husband ; R. compart- 
ment, the marriage of Our Lady to Joseph by St. Zacharias ; 
the little Virgin is here represented as a child about twelve 
years old. Opposite, or R. side, above, L. compartment, the 
Annunciation, Mary drawing water at a well meanwhile ; 
R. compartment, the High Priest presents Mary with a vase 
of pigment, wherewith to dye the veil of the Temple. Now, 
take the lower level, beginning again on the L. as before : 
L. compartment, the meeting of Mary and Elizabeth (Mary's 
name ignorantly restored as Hanna) ; R. compartment, 
Joseph, being an austere man, reproaches the Blessed 
Virgin. R. side, L. compartment, the angel warns Joseph 
in a dream that Mary has conceived of the Holy Ghost : 
R. compartment, Joseph and Mary go to Bethlehem to be 
taxed. The story continues on the main wall under the 
arch, opposite you, below the windows. The angel warns 
Joseph to flee into Egypt ; the return to Nazareth (as 
described in the Latin verse ; otherwise, one might have 
taken it for a flight into Egypt) ; Christ among the doctors 
in the Temple. This curious series deserves close study. 
Its Latin inscriptions are quaint and crabbed, but full of 
meaning. 

This part of the gallery is also the best point for observing 
the great north dome, which contains the history of 
St. John the Evangelist (formerly patron of this part of 
the building) ; the raising of Drusiana, Stacteus on his bed, 




Photograph: Alinari 



VIEW IN THE CHOIR, S. VITALE, RAVENNA 

Buii.t in the Sixth Century under the Emperor Justinian 

Compare with the choir and transept of S. Marco 




Photograph : Anderson 



VIEW IN THE CHOIR AND TRANSEPT OF S. MARCO 
Compare with the Choir of S. Vitale, Ravenna, of the sixth century 



II.] BYZANTINE VENICE: ST MARK'S 71 
the overthrow of the temple of Diana, and other miracles, 
told in relatively few figures. (The light here is seldom 
satisfactory.) On the pendentives are the Four Fathers of 
the Church, fine seventeenth-century mosaics : St. Ambrose 
is early. 

The end wall of the North Transept has a Tree of 
Jesse. The Patriarch lies sleeping below, and from his 
body springs a genealogical tree of the Blessed Virgin, Our 
Lady herself occupying the topmost branches (sixteenth 
century). 

From this point some more of the Virtues and Apostles 
in the great Central Dome can be well observed. 

Now return along the whole length of this gallery, till 
you are past the spot by which you entered. Mount the little 
steps, cross the wide gallery by the large window (under the 
Last Judgment), and enter the gallery of the South Aisle. 

Pass along this gallery till you reach the middle of the 
arcade which separates the Nave from the South Aisle. 

On the wall opposite you (above the beautiful Byzantine 
Madonna) is a large continuous mosaic of the Agony in the 
Garden, representing Christ praying ; His return to the 
sleeping Apostles; His second prayer; His chiding of 
Peter ; the angel with the cup (no cup now visible) ; and 
His saying, " Sleep on," all rudely simple. 

The arch over your head has early mosaics of the mira- 
cles and deaths of the Apostles. On the L. side of the arch, 
above, St. James the Lesser is cast from the tower (to the L. 
are the Jews, to the R. the Pharisees), and the Beheading of 
James. R. of this, burial of the Apostle. Below, St. Philip 
overthrows the statue of Mars, and drives away the demon 
(in the shape of a dragon) which inhabited it (legend given 
in my Guide to Florence, Santa Maria Novella). R. of this, 
he preaches to the Scythians ; further R., his burial. On 
the R. side of the arch, above, St. Bartholomew preaches in 
Upper India; the priests accuse him; the flaying of St. 
Bartholomew. Below, St. Matthew preaches in Ethiopia ; 
the king of the Ethiopians condemns St. Matthew to be 
beheaded at the altar. On the window wall (abo-e the 



72 BYZANTINE VENICE: ST MARK'S [n. 

Agony in the Garden), ill seen except on a bright day, St. 
Simon and St. Jude overthrow the statues of the sun and of 
the moon, and are martyred accordingly. 

Now pass on along the gallery in the same direction till 
you reach the top of the arcade which separates the South 
Transept from its Western Aisle. The west wall of the 
Transept, to your R. as you walk, is covered by one of the 
most ancient and interesting **mosaics in the whole build- 
ing—perhaps the very oldest of all. It represents the dis- 
covery of the body of St. Mark, which had been lost after 
the fire of 976. When the existing church was completed 
in 1094, and about to be dedicated, the Doge could not tell 
what had become of the sacred corpse, and instituted a fast 
for its recovery. To the L. the Patriarch officiates at the 
altar of this very church, whose interior is seen in rude dia- 
grammatic section, with its five domes, arches, and galleries. 
A deacon holds the book. Behind the Patriarch the Doge 
(Vitale Faliero) marked by his title of Dux, bows in prayer ; 
to the extreme L. the Venetian nobles and people kneel in 
attitudes of prostrate supplication. This mosaic thus tells 
the tale of the solemn fast for the recovery of the saint's 
body. The mosaic to the R., evidently a little later, shows 
a similar view of the church, this time rather more in per- 
spective, though still in section and very diagrammatic. A 
pillar to the extreme R. has opened in answer to the prayers 
and exposed the lost sarcophagus of the Evangelist. The 
Patriarch stands by it ; near him the Doge (again marked 
as Dux, and with a simple early ducal cap, different from 
that of later ages) ; beyond are nobles, ladies, and children, 
the latter ill represented, one wearing a crown. I advise 
you to study every detail of these extremely naive and ten- 
tative but very beautiful and touching works. They show 
well the interior of the church in 1094, and also the cos- 
tumes of the period. 

This is likewise a good point from which to view the 
Southern Dome and its surroundings. It contains only 
four figures of four important local saints — St. Blaise (who 
has two churches in Venice), St. Leonard (whose chapel 



II.] BYZANTINE 7 VENICE: ST. MARK'S 73 

was just beneath), St. Nicholas (who lies at the Lido), and 
St. Clement (whose chapel is one of the external apsidal 
pair). In the pendentives are figures of four women mar- 
tyrs, known as the Four Great Virgins of Aquileia (mother- 
city of Venice) : St. Dorothy (particularly beautiful), St. 
Thecla (sixteenth century), St. Euphemia, and St. Erasma. 
These mark the connection of Venice with the old Patri- 
archate on the Latin mainland. 

The arch between this dome and the central one has 
mosaics of scenes from the Ministry of Christ; visible from 
this arcade are, above, the Temptation in the Wilderness ; 
the Devil, as a black-crowned angel, offers Christ stones to 
make into bread; places Him on a pinnacle of the Temple ; 
leads Him on to an exceeding high mountain ; is discomfited, 
and flies away (with good dramatic action) ; angels come 
and minister unto Him. Below, the Entry into Jerusalem, 
with children and others casting their clothing before the 
Saviour, who rides on a white ass; behind Him, the 
Apostles ; in front of Him, Jews and the gate of Jerusalem. 
(The interdependence of all these scenes has already 
been shown, p. 37.) 

Now, look across the Transept to the wall with three 
windows, just opposite you. This contains, above, unin- 
teresting mosaics of Peter walking on the water, the para- 
lytic with his bed, etc. Beneath these are two tiers of 
subjects relating to the life of St. Leonard, whose chapel 
(now that of the Holy Sacrament) originally stood below, 
while his image is found on the great S. Dome just above it. 
These works, though late, are interesting through their 
associations with the saint, now dispossessed, who gave his 
name to th,e transept : they represent, above, St. Leonard 
held at the font by King Clovis ; St. Leonard healing the 
Queen ; St. Leonard distributing alms to beggars ; below, 
St. Leonard making water gush forth miraculously ; St. 
Leonard striking off fetters from prisoners (whose patron 
saint he was) : St. Leonard, after his death, appearing from 
heaven to rescue a prisoner, a figure which may very prob- 
ably have suggested Tintoretto's famous St. Mark, now in 



74 BYZANTINE VENICE: ST. MARK'S [n. 

the Academy. Remember St. Leonard when you visit the 
latter. 

The arch above this series of frescoes has transitional 
works, representing" Christ's miracles of healing. 

The S. window is a rose or wheel, with Gothic tracery. 
A few other Gothic elements, all intrusive, may be found in 
other parts of the building. 

From the gallery above the arcade which separates the 
South Transept from the Chapel (once St. Leonard's) of the 
Holy Sacrament (if open), you can see well the other two 
figures in the S. Dome, and the remainder of the arch be- 
tween the Central and S. Domes, representing the Last 
Supper and Christ washing the feet of the Apostles. 
Various parts of this gallery are also good stations for 
observing the other figures of Apostles and Beatitudes (all 
with their names marked) on the great Ce?itral Dome. You 
must make these out from various points of view with an 
opera-glass. 

Utilise these galleries, too, for examining closely (from 
near by) one or two mosaics at the level of the eye, in 
order to perceive the way in which the component pieces 
are arranged, especially in the treatment of faces and gar- 
ments. 

As you return, pause at the corner by the gallery of the 
South Aisle (near the words "Lapis angularis") in order to 
observe the other half of the great arch between the Western 
and Central Domes. It represents, above, Christ rescuing 
souls from Hades, and, below, the Resurrection, with the 
Maries and the doubting Thomas. 

This corner is also the best point of view for the beautiful 
figure of *Cyon (Gihon), one of the Rivers of Paradise, on 
the pendentives of the Central Dome. Other such points I 
leave to the reader. Stand long and examine each detail 
separately. 

The Sacristy 

may be entered at any time ; the custode in charge of it 
perambulates the church, and has the word "Sagrestia" 
embroidered in very legible characters on his coat ; he will 



II.] BYZANTINE VENICE: ST. MARK'S 75 

unlock the door for you for a few sous. The entra?ice is 
through the Chapel of St. Peter. 

The magnificent room to which you thus gain access 
differs from all the rest of the church in the fact that all its 
decorations are throughout of the same period, and coeval 
with its erection. The **mosaics are in the best Renais- 
sance style, from designs by Titian and his pupils. The 
whole scheme of this decoration is admirable, and may be 
accepted as by far the best of the later mosaics. The 
technical work is perfect. The subjects, however, do not 
require elucidation, nor have they anything like the interest 
of the ancient designs. The great Latin cross which forms 
the central axis of the ceiling has a few figures which are 
self-explanatory. Do not suppose, however, that this fine 
specimen of Renaissance decoration is not worthy of close 
attention because I dismiss it with a few sentences. 

The Treasury 
is entered from the R. Transept : open daily, except festas, 
from 12 to 2; tickets, 25 c. each. It contains a large num- 
ber of fine early cups and reliquaries. Also, an ^episcopal 
tlwofie of the sixth century, known as the Chair of St. 
Mark: it is of carved marble, Egyptian in workmanship, 
and doubtless brought from St. Mark's at Alexandria. The 
principal subjects are St. Mark and Matthew, the symbols 
of the Evangelist, the Lamb, and some cruces ansatce or 
Egyptian symbols of immortality, borrowed by the Alexan- 
drian church from earlier paganism. Note particularly the 
Four Rivers of Paradise and the very Egyptian character 
of the trees. This chair was brought from Alexandria to 
Constantinople at an early date, and sent in 630 by the 
Emperor Heraclius to the Patriarch of Grado, whence it 
was transported in 1520. Canon Pasini believes that it was 
constructed to contain, and perhaps still contains, the 
wooden seat used by St. Mark when he presided over the 
infant church at Alexandria. 



76 BYZANTINE VENICE: ST. MARK'S [n. 

The Crypt 
is seldom open except on St. Mark's Day (April 25). It is 
curiously labyrinthine and architecturally older than any 
other portion of the building, being a part of the oldest 
church, burnt down in the tenth century. The capitals of 
its columns are beautiful and full of interest. 



In S. Marco it is not Rome that we think of; we feel 
instead the influence of the Greek mind, the mind with an 
aptitude for civilisation so great that it never ceases to 
absorb fresh currents, yet ever retains its subtlety, its grace, 
its power over the human race. 

If the reader finds that these notes do not call attention 
to certain objects that interest him in the church, or do not 
solve certain problems that puzzle him, he must remember 
that a full description of all the works of art in St. Mark's on 
the same scale would far outrun the entire limits of this little 
book. Those who desire fuller information must turn to the 
works of Pasini and Saccardo already mentioned. My own 
object has been merely to give my readers in a short com- 
pass some general conception of this glorious church, which 
they may afterwards study for themselves in detail. 



Observe from the Piazzetta one portion of St. Mark's near 
the Doge's Palace, high up, which has not been coated with 
marble, but exhibits well the simple original Byzantine style 
in naked brick-work. 

In connection with St. Mark's, we may also notice the 
two immense *Granite columns in the Piazzetta, facing 
the lagoon. These enormous shafts, each consisting of a 
single block of wrought granite, one grey, one rosy, were 
brought from Tyre in 1126 by Doge Domenico Michiel, 
after he had captured that city from the Saracens, as tro- 
pies of his conquest ; they lay on the Piazzetta till 1171 or 
1 180, owing to the great mechanical difficulties of raising 
them into position. They were then at last placed erect by 



II.] BYZANTINE VENICE: ST. MARK'S 77 

a mediaeval engineer in their existing situation. Thus they 
are indirect memorials of the acquisition of Tyre by the 
Crusaders. Their beautiful broad bases, and still lovelier 
capitals (probably carved in Venice itself in the twelfth cen- 
tury), form glorious specimens of Byzantine Romanesque 
sculpture. The one to the E. bears an ancient bronze 
figure (eleventh or twelfth century) of the winged lion of 
St. Mark, a splendid piece of early native handicraft, the 
wings of which, however, are comparatively modern— in- 
deed, the whole figure, though very ancient in type, has 
been much tinkered. The column to the \V. bears a some- 
what insipid figure of St. Theodore, the ancient patron of 
the Republic, conquering his dragon, which is here repre- 
sented as a very unmistakable crocodile. This figure was 
erected in 1329, but is scarcely more than a mediocre speci- 
men of the art of its period. It seems to me remotely 
derived from the Egyptian type of Horus on the crocodile. 



You may round off your conception of Byzantine Venice 
by comparing with St. Mark's the Byzantine palaces on the 
Grand Canal, and more particularly the Loredtm, the Far- 
setti, and the very old building now absurdly known as the 
Fondaco dei Turchi. These are more particularly noticed 
in a later section. 



Ill 

GOTHIC VENICE: THE DOGE'S 
PALACE 

THE nucleus of the first Venice, before it was made the 
seat of government of the Republic, is said to have 
been the little district about the great bridge over the 
Grand Canal, which still retains the name of Rialto. But 
as soon as the island group of Rivo Alto became the capital 
of the Republic of the Venetians, a Palace for the Dux or 
Doge was erected near the open mouth, on the site which 
its successor still occupies. This earliest palace was prob- 
ably built in the year 813 ; close beside it rose the old Ducal 
Chapel of St. Theodore, the predecessor of St. Mark's. In 
style, the first Ducal Mansion must have generally re- 
sembled the Fondaco dei Turchi, and must no doubt have 
been a building in the severe early Byzantine manner. It 
was more than once burnt down, but each time rebuilt, the 
last large restoration being made by Doge Sebastiano Ziani 
in 1 173. In 1301, however, the government of Venice having 
become by that time more strictly oligarchical, a new saloon 
was built for the meetings of the new Grand Council (Con- 
siglio Maggiore), and this saloon, designed in the fashionable 
Gothic style, which was then just beginning to invade Venice 
from the mainland, formed the nucleus of the existing palace. 
(Earlier Gothic palaces which set the type will be seen 
on the Grand Canal.) For a time only the south front 
towards the open lagoon, with a small part of the western 
facade towards the Piazzetta, was completed in this style ; 
the old Byzantine-Romanesque palace of Ziani filled up the 
gap between this new Gothic portion and the gate next 

78 



III.] GOTHIC VENICE: THE DOGE'S PALACE 79 

St. Mark's (now the Porta della Carta). The existing front 
towards the open lagoon dates from about 1309 to 1340 ; the 
ruins of the old Byzantine palace were pulled down after a 
fire in 1419, and the remaining facade as far as St. Mark's 
was shortly after completed — Gothic in form, but Renais- 
sance in feeling. Later still, during the Renaissance period, 
the inner court and the facade toward the side canal were 
gradually added. These details of the building and its 
vicissitudes will become clearer as we examine the architec- 
ture on the spot. As a whole, the Doge's Palace as it now 
stands may be regarded (externally) as the characteristic 
typical example of fully developed Venetian Gothic. It is 
built of brick, and is lined or incrusted with small lozenge- 
like slabs of variously coloured marble. 

The Interior of the Doge's Palace, as we see it at pre- 
sent, belongs to a much later date than the exterior. The 
building was gutted by a great fire in 1574 and again in 
1577, which entirely destroyed all its pictures and internal 
decorations. The works it now contains are therefore of 
late date (sixteenth and seventeenth century), and should not 
be examined till after the visitor has thoroughly mastered 
the evolution of earlier Venetian painting at the Academy. 
The outside and inside of the Palace, indeed, have little re- 
lation historically to one another. 

Begin your examination of the Doge's Palace at the 
south-east corner, facing the lagoon, and remotest from 
the Piazza. 

Stand on the Ponte della Paglui, opposite the (sixteenth- 
century) Bridge of Sighs, which connects the courts in the 
Palace with the Criminal Prison to your R. (This late 
building has little relation to the original edifice.) The first 
portion of the Palace, on the side canal to your left (Rio di 
Palazzo) has its brick wall still imcased with marble, and 
thus shows you well the primitive character of the architec- 
ture throughout. Notice the charming string-courses of 
decorative work marking the various floors or levels, as well 
as the delicate original windows, spoiled by the proximity of 



So GOTHIC VENICE: THE DOGES PALACE [ill. 

several square modern additions. Confine yourself for the 
present to this primitive brick portion, and observe well 
the arrangements of its component members. 

Note next that the corner of the building here (and in 
most of the other Gothic Palaces) is gracefully softened by 
the addition of spiral columns, with occasional projections ; 
and observe how this artistic softening runs up through all 
the stories. The Palace has three exposed angles (the 
fourth abuts on St. Mark's) ; these three are decorated 
with sculpture : above, the three archangels ; below, three 
figure-subjects intended respectively to inculcate Justice, 
Obedience, Temperance — appropriate morals for the resi- 
dence of a chief magistrate. The archangel in this case is 
Raphael, accompanied by the boy Tobias, holding the fish 
which was to cure his father's blindness. (Tobias is only 
present as the archangel's symbol.) Raphael looks sea- 
ward, and holds a scroll with a prayer (in a rhymed Latin 
hexameter), asking him to render the lagoon and the 
Adriatic free from tempest. (Effice, quaeso, fretum, Rafael 
reverende, quietum.) The sculptured group below repre- 
sents the *Drunke?iness of Noah ( 1317), inculcating Tem- 
perance. (These sculptures are taken here in inverse order 
for an architectural and historical reason, which will pre- 
sently be apparent. The proper order would of course be 
Michael, Gabriel, Raphael.) Shem and Japheth are cover- 
ing their father with a cloth ; Ham stands apart beyond 
the arch. Wine pours from the cup in the drunken patri- 
arch's hand ; his other hand grasps and crushes the grapes. 
The leafage of the vine is fine, but the tendrils have been 
broken. 

Now, descend the bridge, and stand opposite the 
Palace, near the water's edge, to observe the South 
Facade, or Sea Front. It consists of four tiers. The 
lowest tier is composed of an arcade with short and 
somewhat stumpy columns, without bases. (They were 
not always quite so short, as the level of the pavement has 
been raised, but they had never any bases.) The noble 
sculptured ^capitals of these columns are all varied, with 



in.] GOTHIC VENICE: THE DOGES PALACE 81 

fine Gothic feeling, and must be separately examined after- 
wards. This covered arcade, screened from sun or rain, 
was the chief meeting-place of the Venetian nobility in the 
days of the Republic. The second tier consists of an open 
loggia, guarded by a balustrade ; it has cusped arches, with 
pierced quatrefoils above them, having lions' heads in the 
angles. Notice the characteristic ball ornament in the 
quatrefoils. This type of loggia was afterwards copied in 
most of the Gothic palaces on the Grand Canal erected 
subsequently to this building ; they may be described as of 
the Doge's Palace type. The loggia was used by ladies 
of the senatorial order for viewing great state ceremonies. 
The two first floors are thus the lightest. The wall above, 
contrary to the usual rule, is heavier than the lower portion : 
it is relatively plain, and pierced with few windows, but is 
encased in an elaborate decorative pattern of incrusted 
marble. This heavy plainness enhances by contrast the 
beauty and airiness of the lower stories. The first two 
windows of the third tier, to the R., retain their ancient 
tracery (of two types, one like that in the apse of the Frari), 
and perhaps belong to the very earliest part of the building 
(about 1 301). The four plain windows to the L., with the 
large door into the central balcony, form part of the Sala 
del Maggior Consiglio, the great hall for which this second 
portion of the Palace was originally erected (about 1340). 
The fourth tier is pierced with small round windows ; the 
architectural arrangement here will be more obvious after 
you have visited the interior. 

The centre of this Sea Facade is occupied by an immense 
window, with a fine balcony of pierced marble- work (1404). 
On the pinnacle at the summit above stands Justice (or, 
more probably, Venice), with the sword and scales ; below, 
in three niches, St. Mark, flanked by St. Peter and St. 
Paul : then, Charity in the circle above the window, Faith 
and Hope beside her. Close by, the four Cardinal Virtues. 
(These Virtues recur everywhere in Venice.) Beneath, at 
the sides of the window, St. George (modern, by Canova) 
and St. Theodore, the minor patrons. 

G 



82 GOTHIC VENICE: THE DOGES PALACE [in. 

This south facade, taken as a whole, is the oldest part of 
the Palace, dating from the fourteenth century. 

Return to the side-canal corner, by the Drunkenness of 
Noah, in order to examine the capitals of the columns: 

they have been restored (or, rather, renewed), but are still 
interesting, (i) Corner column, symbolical half-lengths of 
children and men (with razors, draughts, etc.) among foliage ; 
(2) pelicans, and other similar birds of symbolical character 
(animal symbolism is an interesting subject, largely exempli- 
fied at Venice, but not to be adequately treated within the 
necessarily restricted limits of this Guide) ; (3) male and 
female heads: (4) children with grapes, birds, etc.; (5) 
famous monarchs (beginning on the side towards the sea 
front) : the Emperor Titus Vespasian, the Emperor Trajan, 
Priam king of Troy (chronologically the series starts here), 
Nebuchadnezzar, Alexander the Great, Darius, Julius Ciesar, 
Augustus ; (6) female heads ; (7) Virtues and Vices (begin 
on the front) : Liberality, dispensing money ; Constancy ; 
Discord ; Patience ; Despair, thrusting a dagger into her 
throat and tearing her hair ; Obedience ; Infidelity, holding 
an idol : Modesty ; (8) Centaurs, Giants, and monsters of 
various forms, all symbolical ; (9) Virtues : Faith, holding 
'the cross ; Courage, tearing open lion's jaw ; Temperance, 
with pitcher and cup of water; Humility, with a lamb; 
Charity, feeding a child ; Justice, holding a sword ; Pru- 
dence, with compasses ; Hope, clasping her hands, all very 
typical allegorical personifications : recollect them for future 
examples; (10) Vices: Luxury, with mirror; Gluttony, gnaw- 
ing a bone ; Pride, as a Knight ; Anger, tearing her own 
breast ; Avarice, clasping money-bags ; Idleness, lolling ; 
Vanity, with a mirror and crown ; Envy, wreathed with 
snakes and nursing a dragon; (n) birds; (12) Vices and 
their opposite virtues : Despondency ; Cheerfulness, playing 
a tambourine ; Folly, on horseback ; Chastity, reading, as 
a cloistered nun ; Honesty ; Falsehood, a hag ; Injustice, 
armed with a halbert ; Abstinence, apparently as continence ; 
(13) Lions' heads ; (14) Symbolical animals— dogs, monkeys, 
a boar, lion, etc. 5(15) the nobility (?), a lady with a distaff; 



in.] GOTHIC VENICE: THE DOGE'S PALACE 83 

a young lord with a rose ; a woman with a lap-dog ; a man 
with a falcon ; a woman counting her jewels ; a man playing 
with foliage ; a queen with a rose ; a boy with a ball : 
symbolising worldly joys and pleasures (?) ; (16) Heads, re- 
presenting nations, eastern and western ; (17) Philosophers : 
Solomon ; Priscian the grammarian, Aristotle the logician, 
Cicero the orator, Pythagoras the arithmetician, Euclid the 
geometer, Tubal Cain the musician, Ptolemy the astrono- 
mer; (18) the sun and planets in their " Houses" or signs ; 
Aquarius, Saturn riding a goat and bearing an urn ; the 
House of Saturn : Sagittarius and Pisces, Jupiter riding a 
centaur, holding the bow, with two fish ; the House of 
Jupiter : Aries and Scorpio, the House of Mars, a knight 
bestriding a ram and carrying a scorpion ; Leo, the House 
of the Sun, represented as Apollo, seated on a lion ; Taurus 
and Libra, the House of Venus, who sits on a bull, and holds 
balances ; Gemini and Virgo, the House of Mercury, be- 
tween two children and a maiden ; Cancer, the House of 
the Moon, a woman in a boat, holding a crab ; God creating 
Adam, for whose use these stars existed (for mediaeval in- 
telligence). Note that everywhere in this age the con- 
nection between astronomy and religion is very close, the 
Calendar being a sacred compilation to show saints' days 
and festivals. 

From the base of the great Granite Column with St. 
Mark's lion, you can best examine the south =west corner. 
It is softened above in the same manner as the preceding 
one. The archangel here is Gabriel ; the sculpture below 
represents **the Fall (1344), and typifies or enforces Obe- 
dience. It is an admirable piece of early Gothic work, with 
especially good fig-tree foliage, well undercut, and extremely 
vigorous. Adam and *Eve are fine Gothic nudes of their 
period. 

Proceed round the corner to examine the W. facade, 
towards the Piazzetta. The first two windows of this fagade 
on the third tier belong to the Sala del Maggior Consiglio, 
and form part of the original Gothic portion, which ended 
at the sixth arch from the Adam-and-Eve corner. Its limits 



84 GOTHIC VENICE: THE DOGES PALACE [m. 
are well marked by a square thickened pillar on the loggia, 
or second tier, surmounted by a fine *relief of Venice en- 
throned between her lions. There can be no doubt as to her 
personality in this case, since she is legibly inscribed, 
"Venecia." Behind her is the rhymed inscription, Fortis 
justa trono furias mare sub pede fiono (" Brave and just, I 
place faction beneath my throne and the sea beneath my 
foot"). 

The rest of this W. facade is of later Gothic work, tinged 
by Renaissance feeling (see introduction to this section), but 
excellently harmonised with the earlier portion. It is the 
part erected (about 1430) under Francesco Foscari upon the 
site of the Romanesque palace of Doge Ziani. The capitals 
of its pillars are mostly copied from those of the earlier 
ones. The central balcony is best observed from the 
lamp-post opposite, near the Libreria Vecchia. On the 
summit stands Venice with her lions ; below, a bearded 
Doge (Francesco Foscari) kneels before the Lion of St. 
Mark with the Venetian motto ("Pax tibi," etc.). The statues 
in the niches represent, above, R., Jupiter, L., Mercury; 
below, R., Neptune, L., Mars. They thus suggestively 
represent (J.) the ducal authority, (M.) the commerce of 
Venice, (N.) her command of the sea, and (M.) her military 
power. Observe that here for the first time we come across 
personages from the pagan mythology, a point which 
marks distinct transition from the mediaeval to the Renais- 
sance spirit. Till now, the symbolism has been all Christian. 

The north =west corner, near St. Mark's, is softened by 
sculpture like the others. Its archangel is St. Michael. Its 
subject-sculpture, a noble piece of fifteenth-century Floren- 
tine work, by a pair of Tuscan sculptors, represents the 
^Judgment of Solomon, typifying Justice ; this group is best 
seen from the seat by the red porphyry figures opposite. 

Note the style of the sculpture of the young King 
Solomon and compare it with the Byzantine examples on 
S. Marco. In the latter there is an attempt to reach some 
transcendental quality; in this figure of Solomon, naturalism 
is triumphant. The individual man is the thing sought for. 




Photograph : J. W. Cruickshank 



HEAD OF KING SOLOMON 
From a Corner of the Ducal Palace. Attributed to a Florentine 
Sculptor of the Fourteenth Century 
Compare with the Italo-Byzantine figures on the west front of S. 



III.] GOTHIC VENICE: THE DOGES PALACE 85 

The Byzantine artist would have dwelt on the rank of the 
king and the official position of the judge ; the real interest 
of the Gothic artist is not in the king, nor in the judge, but 
in the youthful personality. 

The newer semi= Renaissance part of the Palace just 
examined (from the figure of Venice in a circle to the Judg- 
ment of Solomon), was probably erected about 1424-1442, 
by Giovanni B11071, and his two sons, Pantaleone and 
Bartolommeo. Remember Bartolommeo : you will meet him 
elsewhere. 

The magnificent doorway which gives access to the in- 
terior court-yard is known as the Porta del la Carta, because 
government proclamations were posted here. It is late 
Gothic with marked Renaissance tendencies, and was 
erected by Bartolommeo Buon (1438-43). On the summit, 
Venezia is enthroned between her lions, with sword and 
scales, and so named on the pedestal ; beneath, on the 
tympanum, winged children (putti) climb among rampant 
foliage ; at the top of the arch we see St. Mark, holding his 
Gospel, in a circle of Renaissance work ; beneath him, a 
late over-decorated window ; over the square doorway, a 
restored relief of Doge Francesco Foscari kneeling before 
the lion of St. Mark (original destroyed in the French 
Revolution) ; in the niches by the sides, the Virtues 
(Courage, Prudence, Hope, Charity), named on their pedes- 
tals. Study this doorway with all its details as characteristic 
of the transition from Gothic to Renaissance. 

Next, go back to the Adam-and-Eve corner, to examine 
the capitals of the columns along this western facade. 
The corner one (already noted) and the five which succeed 
it, belong to the old part of the building. 

(1) Sculpture and architecture, with small bits of coloured 
marble suggestively inserted, to mark its meaning : the 
figures (sainted masters with their pupils) are at work on 
various pieces of decorative detail : (2) heads of animals, 
tearing prey ; (begin on front) lion with stag ; wolf with 
bird ; fox with cock ; griffin with hare ; boar with mast ; 
dog with bone ; cat with rat ; bear with honeycomb ; the 



86 GOTHIC VENICE: THE DOGES PALACE [in. 

whole creation groaneth and travaileth : (3) the trades ; 
stonecutter, goldsmith, shoemaker, carpenter, measurer, 
gardener, notary, smith : (4) influence of planets on seven 
ages of man ; the moon governs infancy four years ; Mer- 
cury childhood ten ; Venus adolescence seven ; the sun 
maturity nineteen ; Mars middle age fifteen ; Jupiter old 
age twelve ; Saturn decrepitude till death ; death the penalty 
of sin : (5) human heads, races : (6) marriage ; first glimpse 
at a balcony, courtship, presents, embraces, wedding, birth 
of a child, its upbringing, its death : (7) Months, thus : 
March ; April with May; June; July with August ; Septem- 
ber ; October with November ; December, sticking a pig ; 
January with February (this is the first of the later capitals ; 
Ruskin — erroneously, I think— makes it the last of the early 
ones) : (8) female half-lengths : (9) fruits ; cherry ; pear ; 
cucumber; peach; gourd; melon; fig; grape: (10) dupli- 
cate, copied from an old one: (11) duplicate: (12 and 13) 
duplicate: (14) full-length figures, draped: (15 and 16) 
duplicates: (17) children, very Renaissance: (18, Justice, 
continuing the subject above it : Justice, with sword and 
scales, enthroned between her lions ; then, lawgivers — 
Aristotle ; Lycurgus (?) ; Solon ; the " Chastity of Scipio" 
(he refuses a beautiful slave as a bribe) ; Numa building 
temples ; Moses receiving" the law ; Trajan stopping on his 
way to a campaign to do justice to a poor widow ; the in- 
scriptions on the others are in Latin, on this in Venetian. 
Recollect, however, that all these capitals, though good, are 
modern copies; the originals are preserved in a ground-floor 
of the Doge's Palace. 

Do not at present enter the court-yard, but continue on 
past the main facade of St. Mark's, turning to the right 
through the little Piazza dei Leoni (on your L. the pseudo- 
classic facade of the desecrated church of San Basso), and 
holding straight down the narrow street (the Calle di 
Canonico) which leads to the canal (Rio Palazzo) at the 
back of the Palace. (Fronting you as you approach the 
bridge is the imposing and decorated Palazzo Trevisam', 
in the Lombardi or Venetian early Renaissance style, 



ill.] GOTHIC VENICE: THE DOGES PALACE 87 

built about 1500.) Stand on the next bridge to the R. 
to examine the E. or later Renaissance facade of the 

Doge's Palace, facing the Rio di Palazzo, which is best 
observed from this bridge (or the little quay beyond it), 
and the one by the Drunkenness of Noah. It is a fine 
specimen of High Renaissance work, well varied in its 
windows and decorations, but it lacks the picturesque beauty 
of the Gothic portion. The absurdly over-rated Bridge of 
Sighs is a late and incongruous addition, ugly enough in 
itself, but picturesque in virtue of its height, its covered 
parapet, and its unusual position. It was built about 1590 
by Antonio da Ponte, the architect of the Rialto Bridge, to 
connect the Palace with the Prison he had just erected 
beyond the Rio. Most casual visitors to Venice, curiously 
enough, carry away with them, as their main mental picture 
of the mighty mediaeval town, these late Renaissance bridges, 
which, of course, were never seen by the powerful Doges 
or the great painters, sculptors, and architects who made 
Venice. There is nothing romantic about the Ponte dei 
Sospiri, which merely unites the Courts of Justice in the 
Palace with the Criminal Prison. 

Now, return to the Porta della Carta, and enter the 
inner court=yard of the Palace. 

The West and South sides of the court (in brick in the 
upper story) consist in the main of the older building of 
1340 (S.), and the later Gothic extension of 1430 (W.) ; 
but their two lower floors have been remodelled into uni- 
formity with the later Renaissance portion of the building. 
The arcade here has pointed arches, but all the decorations 
and columns are Renaissance in feeling. The E. facade, 
completely coated with marble from top to bottom, forms 
the inner front of the Renaissance portion on the side canal, 
and is a very ornate and costly example of Venetian Renais- 
sance decoration. It is imposing by virtue of its richness, 
and its numerous coloured marble insertions, so charac- 
teristic of the age and place ; but its upper floors harmonise 
ill with the semi-Gothic arcade of the loggia. It was 
erected in the late fifteenth century by Rizzo. Examine the 



N 



88 GOTHIC VENICE: THE DOGE'S PALACE [m. 

characteristic detail, and compare with that of the Louvre. 
The main court also contains two beautiful bronze *wel!= 
heads of Renaissance workmanship (sixteenth century). 

The small court, at the North end of this quadrangle 
has a little fagade adjoining St. Mark's, erected in 1520 by 
Bergamasco, a good and more tasteful specimen of early- 
Renaissance workmanship. 

The great staircase in this little court (known as the 
Scala dei Giga?iti, from the statues at its summit) was the 
entrance by which the nobility approached the palace. It 
was built by Rizzo in 1584, and is topped by colossal 
Renaissance statues of Mars and Neptune (representative 
of the military and naval supremacy of Venice), by Jacopo 
Sansovino (1554). (Note that the classic mythology now 
almost supersedes Christian symbolism.) Between them, 
over the arch, is St. Mark's lion. At the top of this stair- 
case the Doges were crowned, in the later ages of the 
Republic, with the old formula, in Latin, " Receive the 
ducal crown of the dukedom of the Veneti." 

Mount the staircase to the top of the second flight, to view 
the little facade of the connecting link between St. Mark's 
and the Doge's Palace. On either side of the arch which 
faces you as you look back towards the Piazza, are statues of 
Adam and Eve, by Antonio Rizzo, 1462 ; fine specimens of 
the early-Renaissance nude. Above is a charming little 
balcony. The door under the arcade to the R. gives access 
to the Chapel of St. Clement in St. Mark's, and is the one 
by which the Doge usually passed into the church from his 
palace. We have already noticed it in the interior of the 
Basilica. 

Stand by the northernmost of the two well-heads in the 
great quadrangle, in order to examine the little fagade by 
the clock=tower. On the lower floor to the R. is a statue of 
Duke Francesco Maria L, of Urbino, general of the 
Republic, by the Florentine sculptor Bandini. It shows at 
once its Florentine character. The statues in the niches 
are antiques (gods, and a muse), but are freely restored 
Only by the aid of the plan in Baedeker can you thoroughly 



III.] GOTHIC VENICE: THE DOGES PALACE 89 

understand the intricate intermixture of portions of St. 
Mark's with portions of the Doge's Palace in this curiously 
debatable junction corner. 

The pictures in the Ducal Palace belong to the later age 
of Venetian art — they represent the period of the great 
painters Tintoretto, Paolo Veronese, and Palma the younger. 
They have little relation to the Gothic and Renaissance 
exterior. I strongly advise you, therefore, to defer your 
visit to the interior until you have studied the origin and 
development of Venetian painting in full at the Academy. 
You will then be able to place these fine later works in their 
proper position. I give an account of them, accordingly, in 
a subsequent section. 



IV 

RENAISSANCE VENICE 

THE PIAZZA AND PIAZZETTA 

[~ V T 7 E have already obtained some introduction to 
|_ VV Renaissance Venice in our examination of the 
Doge's Palace, where we have seen the transitional Gothic 
stage in the Porta della Carta, and much developed 
Renaissance work in the great court-yard. In strictly 
chronological order, it is true, we ought next to take San 
Zaccaria, and the facade of the Scuola di San Marco, as 
examples of the rise of Renaissance architecture in Venice. 
For convenience sake, however, it will perhaps be best to 
say here the rest of what is necessary about the great group 
of buildings which surround the Piazza and Piazzetta. 
These are the real focus of Venice, old or new, and the 
visitor will naturally wish to know all about them before 
pushing his inquiries into remoter quarters.] 

The Northern Side of the Piazza is formed by a long and 
somewhat monotonous line of uniform buildings, known as 
the Procuratie Vecchle. These were the official residences 
of the nine Procurators of St. Mark^ the principal officers 
of the Republic after the Doge. The lower portion of the 
great wing thus described was erected in 1496 by Pietro 
Lombardo ; the upper portion was added in 15 19 by 
Bartolommeo Buon the younger. This straight range of 
building, with its open arcade and continuous lines of round 
arches, may be regarded as highly characteristic of the 
simplicity and directness of the early Renaissance. 

Adjacent to it is the much more ornate Clock Tower at 
its east end, near St. Mark's. This was erected in 1496, 
probably from designs by Antonio Rizzo, of Verona. The 

90 



IV.] RENAISSANCE VENICh ot 

upper floor is occupied by a great gilt clock, showing the 
signs of the zodiac, and with the hours numbered from I. to 
XXIV., in the Italian fashion. Above it is a gilt figure of 
Our Lady with the Child, and the gilt lion of St. Mark, on a 
blue starry background. On the summit stand two bronze 
men-at-arms, who strike the hours with their hammers — a 
childish wonder. The whole effect of the Clock Tower is 
garish and unworthy of the position. Its arch gives access 
to the Merceria, the principal shopping street of Venice, which 
winds hence tortuously to the Rialto Bridge. Here, as late as 
the reign of Charles II., Evelyn, accustomed only to the small 
mercers of London, saw stuffs exposed for sale which aston- 
ished him by their extraordinary variety and richness. 

Now (neglecting for the moment the other sides of the 
square) proceed into the Piazzetta, to examine the Libreria 
Vecchia, the noble building which forms its west side, 
worthily balancing the front of the Doge's Palace. This 
triumph of Renaissance art was begun by Sansovino in 1536 ; 
it consists, below, of an open loggia ; above, of a continuous 
arcade with embedded columns. The parapet is adorned 
with numerous (inferior) statues. The caryatides at the 
main doorway under the arcade are by Alessandro Vittoria. 
Symonds justly remarks that one cannot regard this noble, 
light, and sumptuous building without echoing the praise of 
Palladio, that nothing more beautiful of its kind had been 
erected in Italy since the days of ancient Rome. It marks 
the second or triumphant stage of the Venetian Renaissance. 
The decorated character of the fine arcade, with its sculp- 
tured figures over the arches, and its festoons of flowers and 
fruit, may be well contrasted with the stern simplicity of the 
slightly earlier Procuratie Vecchie. Observe, too, how the 
idea of two more or less open ranges of arches, one above 
another, is directly inherited by Venetian Renaissance from 
Venetian Gothic and Venetian Romanesque. 

Next, proceed round the corner of the Piazzetta on to the 
Molo or lagoon front, in order to inspect the facade of the 
Libreria Vecchia towards the lagoon. The building once 
contained the splendid library of the Republic, begun by 



92 RENAISSANCE VENICE [iv. 

a legacy from Petrarch, and largely added to by Cardinal 
Bessarion. This glorious Library, combined with the magnifi- 
cent Aldine editions of the classics, serves to remind us that 
in the sixteenth century Venetian activity was not solely 
commercial. To the L. of the Library on this side stands the 
sombre building of the Zecca, or ancient Mint, also erected 
by Sansovino, though in a much severer and heavier style, 
in 1536. The ground floor is now occupied by the P. and O. 
Steamship Company. The upper floors have somewhat stern 
windows, divided by interrupted Doric and Ionic columns, 
in the first and second stories respectively. The zecchino, 
or sequin, derives its name from this building. 

The Campanile, or Bell-tower of St. Mark's, which, 
according to Italian custom, stood detached from the Church, 
fell to the ground on the 14th July, 1902 ; it has since been 
reconstructed. The first bell-tower on this site was raised in 
888, or, according to others, in 911 ; the building which fell 
was probably erected in 1329. The Loggetta, a late-Renais- 
sance portico added in 1540 by Sansovino as a waiting-room 
for the nobles outside of the Doge's Palace, was entirely 
destroyed by the fall of the Tower. 

You may now proceed to observe the three great flag- 
staffs which stand in the Piazza in front of St. Mark's, and. 
from which once floated the standards of the three great 
Dependencies of Venice — Cyprus, Crete, and the Morea, 
now replaced by that of the kingdom of Italy. (On festa 
days the crimson flag of St. Mark's, with the winged lion in 
gold, and the frayed edges, which flaps from the flagstaff of 
the Basilica itself, contrasts well with the crude and gaudy 
modern hues of the Italian tricolour.) The *bro?ize bases of 
these flagstaffs are splendid specimens of Renaissance cast- 
ing, by Alessandro Leopardi, the sculptor of the great statue 
of Colleoni which we shall see hereafter. They were erected 
(1505) under the Dogeship of Leonardo Loredan, as their 
inscription states. The central base has exquisite medallions 
with the Doge's profile, obviously taken from the beautiful 
portrait by Giovanni Bellini, now in the National Gallery in 
London. The reliefs beneath, on all three flagstaffs, are 



IV.] RENAISSANCE VENICE 93 

symbolical of the maritime supremacy of Venice : on the 
centre one, the Republic carries Justice where she goes, and 
is followed by Peace, Commerce, and Plenty. The winged 
lion of St. Mark upholds the wooden shafts. 

The South Side of the Piazza is formed by the Procuratie 
Nuove, which were added by Scamozzi in 1584 as additional 
residences for the Procurators of the Republic. Before that 
date the site on which they stand had been occupied in part 
by the old church of San Geminiano, while a row of ancient 
houses spread to the west from the base of the Campanile. 
(The shape and arrangement of the Piazza at this time are 
well shown in a famous picture by Gentile Bellini in the 
Academy, Room XV.) Scamozzi erected his building on 
the site of the (demolished) old church in order to continue 
the architecture of Sansovino's Libreria Vecchia on this 
side of the enlarged square. As the new building would 
have looked low and squat, however, if continued along so 
large an area at the same level, he added an upper story 
to the design. (That is why I have brought you here in 
this apparently capricious order.) This poor later-Renais- 
sance work has neither the simplicity of the Procuratie 
Vecchie nor the graceful and ornate beauty of the Libreria ; 
it well indicates the gradual modernisation and vulgarisa- 
tion of the Renaissance ideals. The first ten windows on 
the side towards the Library have figures on the pediments, 
evidently suggested by Michael Angelo's Night and Morn- 
ing, but of little artistic value. The western portion of the 
building, no doubt for reasons of economy, is less richly 
decorated. At the present day, the Procuratie Nuove, the 
Libreria, and the Zecca, have been united inside to form 
the Royal Pa/ace, which was the Emperor of Austria's, and 
is now the King of Italy's, official residence when in Venice. 
Its pretty garden, at the rear of the Procuratie, faces the 
lagoon. The Palace contains a few works of art, which, 
however, you had better leave unseen till you have visited 
everything else noticed in this volume. 

Till the Napoleonic occupation, the west end of the 
Piazza was occupied by the new church of San Geminiano, 



94 RENAISSANCE VENICE [IV. 

erected by Sansovino (who was buried in it), in place of the 
old one, as well as by a few other unimportant buildings. 
But in 1810 Napoleon pulled down Sansovino's church in 
order to erect in its place the connecting arcade and mass 
of buildings still known as the Nuova Fabbrica. This, 
though adapted to a certain extent to the prevailing tone of 
the architecture of the Piazza, has decorations in the insipid 
pseudo-classical style of the First Empire. It was added 
in order to contain the grand staircase for the rambling 
palace formed by Napoleon out of the older buildings. 

The visitor will thus see that the edifices which surround 
the Piazza and Piazzetta (including S. Mark's and the 
Doge's Palace) are of very different dates, and that they 
represent almost every successive phase of Byzantine, 
Gothic, early Renaissance, high Renaissance, late Renais- 
sance, and modern architecture. Fortunately, however, 
they do not include any rococo building. 

The Piazza is much wider at its eastern than at its 
western end, but the architecture has been cleverly ar- 
ranged as far as possible to conceal this inequality. It is 
instructive to compare the present shape and the present 
buildings with those shown in Bellini's picture. I need 
hardly add that the shops which now occupy the ground 
floors of this magnificent suite of republican palaces are a 
purely modern invasion. In the great days of Venice, the 
Piazza and Piazzetta were entirely given up to the offices of 
the State and the residences of the chief magistrates of the 
Commonwealth. 

Spend as much of your time as possible in and about the 
Piazza. Remember that nothing in Venice can compare in 
importance with St. Mark's, the Doge's Palace, and the 
buildings that flank them. 



THE CHURCHES 

The Churches have been grouped, according to their 
position, so that they may be most easily visited, by gondola 
or on foot. 

Group A. 

THE SALUTE. SAN TROVASO. SAN SEBAS- 

TIANO. I CARMINI. SAN PANTALEONE. 

SANTA MARIA DELLA SALUTE. 

V\ 7 EN ICE, during the Middle Ages, was much exposed 
L V to the chance of plague, owing to its constant com- 
mercial intercourse with the crowded and pestilence-stricken 
towns of the Levant. When an epidemic occurs in modern 
times we improve the main drainage and sanitary con- 
ditions ; the Middle Ages, under similar circumstances, 
regarding the disease as a Divine punishment, vowed and 
built a new church to an influential plague-saint. In conse- 
quence of this habit the whole coast of the* Adriatic abounds 
in plague-churches, and in votive pictures dedicated by 
those who escaped, or recovered from the malady. It is 
therefore well, before attacking the deliberate study of 
Venetian painting at the Academy, to become acquainted 
on the spot with some at least of the Great Plague-Churches 
of the city. In the Academy we shall find many such pesti- 
lence-pictures, divorced from the surroundings for which 
they were originally intended ; and we can therefore the 
less comprehend their import and significance. In the 
plague-churches, on the other hand, we see them in their 
original places, and in the midst of other objects of the 
same character. 

95 



96 THE CHURCHES [v. 

In 1630 Venice was visited by an epidemic of the plague 
of unusual violence. In the city, 46,000 persons perished ; 
in the lagoons, 94,000. As a votive offering for escape from 
the pestilence, the Republic vowed a church to Our Lady of 
Health or of Deliverance (Madonna della Salute), and in 
1 63 1 it began the erection of the existing building of Santa 
Maria della Salute. The church was designed in a de- 
based form of the then fashionable Palladian style by 
Longhena, a pupil of Palladio's ; and, for an edifice of its 
period, it is not ungraceful in general proportions. Almost 
every object of art it contains (many of them brought from 
earlier buildings) bears reference to pestilence. Though it 
is the youngest of the plague-churches, I take it first, 
because it is in some ways the most characteristic] 

The Salute may be reached (1) by gondola direct ; (2) by 
steamer to the Accademia (10 c.) ; thence the pleasantest 
way is to turn down the broad street, L. of the Academy, 
till you reach the Fondamenta delle Zattere ; there turn to 
the L., cross three bridges in a direct line, and take the 
broad street on the L., which leads you at once within sight 
of the Salute. 

The exterior is singularly effective from a distance 
(especially as viewed from the Grand Canal), with its two 
unequal domes, and its pair of picturesque bell-towers at 
the back. Its situation is splendid. The fine flight of steps 
before it also adds greatly to its effectiveness. Seen nearer, 
however, it ceases to be beautiful ; the decorations are 
florid and overloaded, while the buttresses (themselves a 
sham, since the cupola is of wood and therefore needs no 
support) are affectedly twisted into meaningless scrolls. 
The figures in the niches (St. George, St. Theodore, the 
Evangelists, the Prophets, Judith with the head of Holo- 
fernes, etc.) do not deserve individual inspection. At the 
apex of the pediment is placed a statue of the patroness, 
Our Lady, who thus presides over the church erected in her 
honour. 

The interior is circular, or, rather, octagonal, with eight 
radiating chapels on the outer row. R. of the entrance are 



v.] THE CHURCHES 97 

three altars, with (poor) scenes from the life of the patroness, 
Our Lady, by Luca Giordano : her Presentation in the 
Temple, her Ascension, her Nativity. Over the third altar 
to the L. of the entrance, the Descent of the Holy Ghost, 
by Titian, a weak specimen of the master, much blackened 
by time. 

The High Altar, opposite the main entrance, in the 
second circular portion or Presbytery, under the back dome, 
has a vulgar Baroque sculptured altar-piece by Justus le 
Court : Venice at the feet of Our Lady, imploring protection 
from the plague. To the R., Our Lady despatches an angel 
to repel the dark demon of the pestilence. (I only mention 
this ugly and florid work because of its strikingly illustrative 
deprecatory character.) The monolithic columns of the 
Presbytery are from a Roman temple at Pola in I stria. 
On the ceiling, Four Evangelists and Four Fathers by 
Titian. 

L. of the altar is the entrance to the Sacristy, which 
contains a number of typical plague-pictures. L., on enter- 
ing, a Girolamo da Treviso ; in the centre, the protector 
against pestilence, San Rocco, lifting his robe to show his 
plague-spot (see later under the church of San Rocco) ; R., 
St. Sebastian, wounded with the arrows of the pestilence ; 
L., St. Jerome, patron saint of the painter, with his lion and 
book — a very characteristic and speaking plague-picture. 
On the other side of the door, a Madonna and Child ; close 
by, St. Sebastian, by Marco Basaiti, another plague-picture. 
Over the altar, * Titian; Venice preserved from the plague 
of 1 5 10, in which Giorgione died. (It was painted for the 
church of Santo Spirito in 15 13, and brought to this new 
plague-church in 1656.) In the centre sits St. Mark 
enthroned, as representative of Venice, his curious seat 
apparently suggested by the sacred stone of the Republic, 
the Pietra del Bando. A cloud flits over and casts a shadow 
on his face, indicating that the plague has attacked Venice. 
It is, however, clearing away, and the Evangelist's body is in 
bright sunshine. To the R., the two great plague-saints, St. 
Sebastian, shot through with arrows, and San Rocco, lifting 



98 THE CHURCHES [v. 

his garment to show his plague-spot. To the L., the two 
medical saints, Cosmo and Damian, with their surgical 
instruments and boxes of ointment. Damian seems to point 
to St. Roch's symptoms, as if in consultation. The whole 
thus represents the preservation of Venice after a severe 
pestilence by the intercession of St. Mark, whose body she 
possesses, and of San Sebastian and San Rocco, to both of 
whom she has erected churches, while of one she holds the 
actual remains, as well as by the skill and care of her medical 
profession, with the aid of the patron saints of the faculty. 
This is, perhaps, the most characteristic example you could 
find in Europe of a local plague-picture. As a specimen of 
Titian, it belongs to his early period, when he was still 
strongly influenced by Giorgione ; but I advise you to defer 
these questions of the evolution of art till after you have 
visited the Academy. It has been badly restored. 

One entire wall of this sacristy is occupied by * Tinto- 
retto's Marriage at Cana in Galilee, a large dark picture, 
much praised by Ruskin — " colour as rich as Titian's ; light 
and shade as forcible as Rembrandt's" — but ill seen in its 
present position. Such a festive work obviously does not 
belong to a plague-church ; it is one of the subjects usually 
painted for the refectories of monasteries, and, as a matter 
of fact, this example was brought from the refectory of the 
Brotherhood of the Crociferi. Long perspective, fine effect 
of light, golden-haired Venetian ladies, no sacredness. 

On the ceiling are three paintings by Titian, not specially 
related to the main subject of the church ; they represent the 
Death of Abel, Abraham* s Sacrifice, and the Death of Goliath. 
This Sacristy contains several other good pictures (including 
one * lunette, skied, from the tomb of Doge Francesco 
Foscari), which, however, I advise you to neglect, as they do 
not fall in with the scheme of the church, and are by no 
means among the most interesting objects in Venice. In the 
ante-sacristy is a good fifteenth-century kneeling statue of 
Doge Agostino Barbarigo. 



(Close to the Salute, on the W., rises the beautiful four- 



v.] THE CHURCHES 99 

teenth-century Gothic apse of the church of the Monastery 
of San Qregorio, now secularised. The courtyard of the 
abbey, let out in tenements, may be reached by crossing 
the bridge and taking the first turn to the R. Though very 
dilapidated, it is, perhaps, the most picturesque court in 
Venice. Its gate towards the Grand Canal is quietly 
beautiful, and has a quaint figure of the patron, St. Gregory, 
over the doorway.) 

S. TROVASO. 

(May be reached in a few minutes by gondola from the 
Salute ; or on foot, from the Iron Bridge or the Accademia 
Steamboat Station.) 

The church contains three pictures by Jacopo Tintoretto. 
In the Choir, to R. of the altar, The Adoration of the 
Magi. The scene is treated as offering a contrast between 
the humble surroundings and the regal magnificence of the 
guests. The Kings have long trains to their brocaded 
mantles, and the bystanders form a court of prosperous 
Venetians. In the foreground is a peasant with a market 
basket. 

On the left of the Choir, Joachbris offer rejected. The 
high priest, wearing a mitre like a bishop, is seated on a high 
throne. Joachim, a grey-bearded man, makes an appeal 
to the priest in response to his gesture of rejection. In 
the background, Joachim goes out to his flocks, in the 
desert, and meets Anna at the Golden Gate. 

In the Northern transept is the Last Stepper. The Com- 
pany, seated at a square table, has been thrown into con- 
fusion by the words which Christ has just uttered, " One of 
you shall betray Me." The scene is not treated in a cere- 
monial or in a ritual aspect, such as we find in the Florentine 
pictures by Ghirlandajo and Castagna. The naturalism is 
commonplace ; it does not reveal the deeper and wider 
elements in human nature as does the naturalism of 
Leonardo. Non-essential details of clothing, of furniture, 
and of gesture are prominent. The whole picture is very 
effective in colour and lighting. Over the door of the 



ioo THE CHURCHES [v. 

Southern transept, is a picture of the Wedding Feast at 
Cana. 

SAN SEBASTIANO. 

San Sebastiano may be reached, on foot, from the Zattere 
by continuing along the quay till you arrive at the Rio di 
San Sebastiano ; or, direct, in a gondola. 

[St. Sebastian the Martyr, who was shot through with 
arrows, but miraculously recovered, though he afterwards 
died by being beaten to death with clubs, was from an early 
date the chief patron against plague and pestilence through- 
out the whole of Europe. (See his legend in Mrs. Jameson.) 
Arrows have been regarded, indeed, from classical times as 
the common symbol of pestilence. A Jeronymite monastery 
and church in honour of this most ancient and revered of 
plague-saints existed in early mediaeval Venice ; but the 
present remodelled building dates only from 1 506-1 518, and 
is a tolerable specimen of the Renaissance art of the period. 
It is interesting, however, both as one of the Great Plague- 
Churches of the city, and also as being the favourite 
church of Paolo Veronese, who is buried in it, and who 
painted here some splendid scenes from the life of St. 
Sebastian and his companions. As the tourist will by this 
time be tolerably familiar with the art of the votive plague- 
offerings, I will not in this case lay so much stress as 
previously on these particular features. 

Paolo Veronese, when he first came from Verona to 
Venice, was employed by the Jeronymites to decorate their 
Sacristy, and also, later, the ceiling of their church. These 
were his first commissions, and they brought him into much 
notice. 

As this is a Jeronymite church, look out for St. Jerome 
as well as St. Sebastian. The monastery is dissolved : 
from its Refectory came the gorgeous Veronese of the 
Supper in the House of the Pharisee, now in the Brera 
at Milan.] 

The facade is uninteresting ; it has on the apex of its 
pediment a figure of the patron saint, wounded with arrows. 
Near the door, small figures, of St. Sebastian, and St. 



v.] THE CHURCHES 101 

Jerome. On a house to the L. in the little Campo (once 
part of the monastery) is another statuette of the patron 
saint, with the crown of martyrdom. 

The interior is bare, but has a handsome painted ceiling. 

Begin with the R. wall. The first chapel, of St. Nicholas, 
has a fine seated figure of that holy bishop, enthroned, by 
Titian ; an angel holds his mitre ; beside him, the three 
balls which are his symbol. On the second altar, partially 
hiding the altar-piece, is a dainty little *Madonna by Paolo 
Veronese, with St. Antony of Padua (lily) and St. Catharine 
of Alexandria, the latter presenting a dove to the infant 
Saviour. St. Antony is a portrait of the prior of the 
monastery at the time it was painted. The third altar has 
a sculptured altar-piece by Tommaso Lombardo (1547) of 
Our Lady and the Child, with the infant St. John the 
Baptist, of a type made popular by the Florentine sculptors. 
The architecture of the niche is better than the marble group 
within it. The fourth altar (of black and white marble, 
with ugly spiral columns, symbolically mourning) has a 
Crucifixion by Veronese, superior in feeling to most of his 
sacred works ; the attitudes of the fainting Mater Dolorosa 
and of St. John show increasing freedom of treatment ; the 
Mary Magdalen, however, though not without pathos, is one 
of his usual handsome Venetian women. (You will appre- 
ciate these pictures better after you have studied the 
development of Venetian art at the Academy.) At the sides 
are figures (by Alessandro Vittoria) of Our Lady's husband, 
St. Joseph, bearing the budded staff, and her Mother, 
St. Anna. Beyond the pulpit is the monument of Bishop 
Livio Podocataro (d. 1555), by Sansovino, a Renaissance 
work of a type with which we shall hereafter become more 
familiar ; the recumbent figure of the Bishop lies on his 
sarcophagus ; above, Our Lady and the Child. 

The little chapel beside the apse has nothing of interest. 

The apse, with a dome, is entirely devoted to the glori- 
fication of St. Sebastian, and of his companion martyrs, 
St. Marcus and St. Marcellinus. The altar-piece is an Apo- 
theosis of St. Sebastian, who is seen below, bound to the 



102 THE CHURCHES [v. 

pillar at which he was shot. On the R. are St. Mark with 
his Gospel (representing Venice), and St. Francis with the 
cross and stigmata (representing the Franciscan Jerony- 
mites) ; on the L., St. John the Baptist and St. Catharine of 
Alexandria, with the palm of her martyrdom ; above, in 
clouds, Our Lady and the Child, waiting to receive the soul 
of the glorious martyr. 

The large ^picture on the R. wall represents the final 
actual martyrdom of St. Sebastian (who was beaten to death 
after recovering from his arrow wounds), before a Roman 
official habited like a great Venetian magnate of Veronese's 
own period ; the palatial late architecture, and the dogs and 
other accessories, are highly characteristic of the painter's 
manner. But as a whole the work, though with good 
points, is confused and turgid. 

The magnificent **picture on the L. wall may be regarded 
as one of Veronese's masterpieces. On the steps of a soaring 
and spacious Renaissance palace the two saints, Marcus 
and Marcellinus, with their hands and feet bound in ropes 
or chains, set out for martyrdom. Their mother, close by 
(to the L.), implores them to save their lives by abjuring 
Christianity ; to the R., their father, a dignified old man 
with a long beard, in senatorial robes, adds the force of his 
prayers to their mother's. Friends surround and persuade 
them. But in the centre of the picture, St. Sebastian, a vivid 
and eager young Roman soldier in full armour, bearing a 
standard, encourages the martyrs to prove their devotion to 
the faith by going to their death gladly. The vigour, spirit, 
and dramatic action of the fiery young saint, consumed by 
zeal for his religion, and wild with enthusiasm, are very re- 
markable ; he seems to hurry us after him. The bystanders, 
the accessories, and the imaginary palatial architecture, in the 
style of Sansovino's Libreria Vecchia, then comparatively 
lately completed, are all full of Veronese's feeling as well 
as of the sumptuous and spacious sense of sixteenth-century 
Venice. 

On the L. wall is the organ, the shutters of which are 
also painted, by Veronese, with subjects more or less relating 



v.] THE CHURCHES 103 

to the plague. On the outer shutters is the Purification of 
Mary in the Te?nple, a picture which almost foreshadows 
Rubens ; it seems to typify purification from the pestilence. 
On the inner shutters (when open) is the Pool of Bethesda, 
which, as we have seen at San Rocco, is a usual plague- 
subject. 

In the first chapel on this wall is a good bust of Paolo 
Veronese himself, surmounting his tomb. The second chapel, 
of St. John the Baptist, has a Baptism of Christ, by Veronese, 
interesting for comparison with earlier treatments both of the 
central figures and of the attendant angel. On the last altar, 
St. James the Greater, between two or three ill-discriminated 
saints ; observe his scallop-shell, which is also quaintly repre- 
sented in stone on the steps of the altar. (It was his symbol, 
worn by pilgrims to his great Spanish shrine of Santiago de 
Compostella.) 

The fine carved ceiling has *scenes by Veronese from the 
Life of Esther mentioned in the Introduction. Nearest the 
door, she goes to Ahasuerus ; centre, she is crowned queen ; 
nearest the apse, Mordecai's triumph. 

This church, though wholly given over to the cult of 
St. Sebastian, is perhaps in its symbolism the least character- 
istic of the great plague-churches. 

SANTA MARIA DEL CARMINE. 

This church, known as I Carmini, may be reached in a 
few minutes from S. Sebastiano or S. Trovaso. Over the 
entrance door is a porch, which has several small panels 
with reliefs in Byzantine style, of birds feeding upon fish or 
animals. Over the door are two peacocks drinking from a 
vase which rests on a column. 

Over the second altar on the R. is Cimds Adoration of 
the Shepherds. The scene is set in a fine landscape ; to 
the right stand Raphael and Tobias, and behind the kneel- 
ing shepherds, to the left, are Saints Barbara and Catherine. 

Over the third altar to the R., The Circumcision, by 
Tintoretto, a very dark picture. 

Over the second altar on the L. Lorenzo Lotto has 



io 4 THE CHURCHES [v. 

painted St. Nicholas ascending to heaven ; beneath, to the 
left, St. John the Baptist ; to the right, St. Lucia. Three 
angels attend the saint and hold his mitre, his pastoral 
staff, and his three purses. 

Beyond the third altar on the L. there is a small Pieta, 
in relief, by Verrocchio. (Dr. Bode suggests Leonardo.) 

SAN PANTALEONE. 

In the chapel to the left of the High Altar is an altar- 
piece by Giovanni # d'Allemagna and Antonio Vivarini, 
known as // Paradiso (1444). The Trinity (represented by 
the Father Eternal, the Dove, and Christ crowning the 
Virgin) appears on a high throne. Below, among the pillars 
which support the throne, are the Holy Innocents. 

At the foot of the throne are the four Doctors of the 
Church, with the four symbols of the Evangelists. In the 
background, as though in an amphitheatre, are rows upon 
rows of saints and angels. The formal design of this 
Paradise may have been suggested by Guariento's fresco 
( I 36s), which was recently discovered in the Ducal Palace, 
on the wall of the Sal del Gran Consiglio, behind the 
picture of the same subject by Tintoretto. 

On the roof of the church is a huge painting by 
Fumiani, The Glorification of St. Pa?italeon. 

Group B. 

THE FRARI. S. TOMA. S. ROCCO. SCUOLA DI 
S. ROCCO. 

THE FRARI. 

[In almost every great Italian town there exist to this 
day two immense churches, usually dating back to 
the thirteenth century, and belonging respectively to the 
Dominicans and the Franciscans, the popular preaching 
orders of the Middle i\ges. At Florence, these two churches 
are Santa Maria Novella and Santa Crocej at Venice, they 
are SS. Giovanni e Paolo, and the Frari. 

The rise of the Friars marks the beginning of the great 



v.] THE CHURCHES 105 

religious revival in mediaeval Europe, which dates from the 
first quarter of the thirteenth century. Filled with a fierce 
evangelising zeal, the followers of Dominic and Francis 
spread themselves everywhere, but especially in the crowded 
towns, where, like the early Wesleyans or the Salvation 
Army, they strove to address in particular the poorest and 
most outcast classes. Vowed to poverty themselves, they 
alleviated the poverty and sufferings of their downtrodden 
neighbours. As they preached above all to the many, they 
needed large churches, the services in which were at first en- 
thusiastically attended. But in commercial Venice the world 
soon conquered. Both their great cathedral-like buildings 
became before long the favourite resting-places of the rich 
and mighty ; and the Friars' shrines are now visited by 
tourists chiefly for the sake of the sumptuous tombs of 
Doges and Senators which they contain, or else for the 
lordly altar-pieces presented, half in devotion, half in self- 
glorification, by wealthy and noble families. Both orders 
had other and more strictly missionary churches in Venice. 
The Franciscans or Frati Minori di San Francesco 
were settled at Venice as early as 1227. In 1250, having by 
that time begged sufficient funds, they began the erection of 
their great church, adjoining their friary. It was completed 
about 1338 (by Fra Pacifico), and dedicated to Our Lady 
under the title of Santa Maria Glo?'iosa dei Fran'. A few 
Doges are buried here ; but the monuments are chiefly those 
of great Venetians, military, naval, or administrative, and of 
painters or sculptors. Families were then divided into 
friends of the Franciscans and of the Dominicans. Bear in 
mind that this is a Franciscan church, and expect to find 
Franciscan saints and symbols.] 



(The Frari can be approached either by gondola direct 
or by the steamboat to San Toma station.) Externally the 
church, though vast, is not very interesting. The West 
Front has a fine Italian Gothic doorway, surmounted by 
figures of the Risen Christ, with the Madonna and Child and 
the founder of the order, St. Francis. 



106 THE CHURCHES [v. 

The South Facade is chiefly interesting as affording a 
view of the lofty campanile, erected in 1361 by Jacopo delle 
Massegne. High up on its west side are figures of Our Lady 
with the Child, and St. Francis receiving the stigmata from 
a six-winged crucified seraph. Beyond the campanile, again, 
we come to a fine doorway of a special Venetian type, the 
finial ending in a figure with an open book, characteristically 
Venetian ; below is a charming relief of Our Lady enthroned 
with the Child, between two adoring angels, of the school of 
the Massegne (about 1400). Over the other door, to the R. 
of this, is a figure of St. Francis. 

Walk round further into the little Campo in front of the 
Scuola di San Rocco,in order to observe the lofty unbuttressed 
Apse, which, as is often the case in Venetian churches, 
is architecturally the most interesting portion of the building. 
It is probable that the traceries in these windows suggested 
those of the Doge's Palace. This Apse and the Chapels 
adjacent should be examined externally from several points 
of view. 

(Enter by the door in the South Aisle. Admission, 
50 cents.) 

The interior resembles in its largeness of parts and in 
general plan that of San Giovanni e Paolo ; it has a Nave, 
simple Aisles, an Apse, and six Apsidal Chapels in line with 
the Apse (four at San Zanipolo). Its chief peculiarity, how- 
ever, is that the Choir is placed west of the Transepts, as in 
Westminster Abbey and in some other northern churches. 

Begin your examination of the interior in the R. or 
N. Aisle. 

First altar, rococo. 

Near the first pillar, on a Holy- Water Basin, statue of 
Chastity bearing a lamb, by Campagna (1593). 

Beyond this, modern monument to Titian, erected by 
Ferdinand I. (1838-52), with the muses of Sculpture, Archi- 
tecture, Painting, and Wood-carving. Titian himself is 
seated in the centre ; behind him, relief representing his 
famous picture of the Assumption, formerly the High Altar- 
piece of this Franciscan church. 



V.] THE CHURCHES 107 

Second altar, Salviati, Presentation of the infant Virgi?i 
in the Temple. Beyond it, rococo monument of Almerico 
D'Este, general of the Republic, with his statue (1660). 

Third altar, statue of St. Jerome with his lion, by Ales- 
sandro Vittoria, said to be a likeness of Titian in his old 
age, and famous for its anatomical correctness. Behind it, 
Glory of St. Francis. 

Mount the steps by the Choir. Pass three or four unim- 
portant sixteenth and seventeenth century monuments, and 
enter the R. Transept. 

R. wall of Transept, early Renaissance monument of 
Jacopo Marcello (1484), by the Lombardi. The sarco- 
phagus is borne by three crouching figures of captives : 
above it is the statue of Marcello himself, erect, not recum- 
bent ; on either side, military pages. This is a fine early 
example of the non-recumbent figure. (In other places, 
intermediate forms occup where the figure slowly raises 
itself on one elbow.) 

End wall, near door of Sacristy, ornate terra-cotta 
florid-Gothic monument of the "Beato" Pacifico, a Fran- 
ciscan brother, and the Architect under whom this church 
was completed, erected (a century after his death) by 
his family. This is a fine specimen of Florentine terra- 
cotta, its over-elaborate Gothic almost merging into 
Renaissance, with "wild crockets." In the lunette is the 
Baptism of Christ ; on a sarcophagus, beneath it, Faith, 
Hope, and Charity, in niches, with the Resurrection, and 
Christ in Hades ; on the finial, Our Lady and the Child ; 
at the sides, above, a painted Annunciation. This curious 
and interesting transitional work deserves careful examina- 
tion. 

Over the door of the Sacristy, monument of Admiral 
Benedetto Pesaro, 1503, by Lorenzo Bregno and Antonio 
Minello : the Pesari were the chief patrons of this Fran- 
ciscan church. The portal itself is formed by the monu- 
ment, which bears ships and other emblems of Pesaro's 
victories ; in the centre, the Admiral's statue ; above it, in 
the pediment, Our Lady and the Child ; L., Neptune (?), 



loS THE CHURCHES [v. 

and R., Mars (by Baccio da Montelupo)— heathen deities 
admitted into a Christian church. 

L. of this, spirited wooden equestrian statue of a Roman 
prince, Paolo Savello, with stolid bourgeois features ; on 
the sarcophagus, Our Lady and the Child ; and the usual 
Annunciation. In this case and others like it the recum- 
bent figure has not only risen from the lid of the tomb, but 
has actually mounted on horseback. 

Enter the Sacristy (closed ; the Sacristan expects a 
small fee). 

Opposite the door, large marble reliquary, with reliefs of 
the Passion, of the seventeenth century ; good and relatively 
unaffected works of their bad period. In the centre, behind 
a curtain, beautiful ^Renaissance ciborium, with charming- 
decorative work ; relief of a Pieta, and figures of St. John 
the Baptist and St. Francis. 

Re-enter the main church, and proceed to examine the 
Apsidal Chapels. 

The first chapel, of St. Francis, has an ugly modern altar- 
piece of St. Francis receiving the stigmata, which I notice 
here only for its importance as regards the Franciscan 
order ; all the symbolism of the chapel is obviously Fran- 
ciscan. 

Second chapel: on the R. wall, the monument of Duccio 
degli Alberti, ambassador of Florence in Venice (d. 1336). 
This is the earliest tomb in Venice on which the Virtues 
appear (Justice and Temperance at the sides), but it is 
of Florentine workmanship ; otherwise it resembles the 
ordinary early Gothic tombs in having the recumbent figure 
of the deceased on a sarcophagus, and a canopy above it. 
Study it as marking an epoch in the evolution of Venetian 
sculpture. Many later tombs are copied from it. L. wall, 
fourteenth-century tomb, usually called " the Monument of 
the Unknown Knight" ; it has no inscription, but presents 
the well-sculptured figure of a knight in hauberk and 
helmet, lying dead on his sarcophagus, with a dog (his crest) 
at his feet. Above him is a figure of St. Joseph bearing the 
infant Christ, towards whom the face of the figure turns. 



v.] THE CHURCHES 109 

These two admirable early tombs should be carefully com- 
pared, both for architecture and symbolism, and contrasted 
with the bombastic tone of later monuments. 

The third chapel has nothing of importance. 

The Apse, the internal architecture of which is rather 
interesting - than beautiful, had formerly for its High Altar- 
piece Titian's Assic?nptio?i of the Madonna, as is appro- 
priate in a church dedicated to St. Mary in Glory. This 
famous picture, towards which the whole building once 
converged, is now in the Academy, and its place has been 
taken by an altar-piece of the same subject by Salviati, 
brought from the demolished church of the Servites. 

R. wall of Apse, late Gothic, almost Renaissance, tomb 
of Doge Francesco Foscari (d. 1457), by Antonio Rizzo. 
This is a striking example of the way in which the late 
Gothic monuments approached the Renaissance ideals. It 
also shows the increased size and costliness of the later 
tombs. The centre of the design is occupied by the sarco- 
phagus, supported by trefoiled arches : on it lies the dead 
Doge, with solid, practical, unimaginative features. At his 
head and feet stand the four Cardinal Virtues, life-size, and 
becoming of immensely increased importance in the com- 
position. The curtains above (like those of a bed) are drawn, 
no longer by angels, but by two pages in armour, introduced 
merely to show a knowledge of classical costume and of 
anatomy. On the sarcophagus itself are Faith, Hope, and 
Charity, retaining little, if anything, of Gothic feeling. 
Above the curtains is a figure of Christ blessing, in a 
mandorla ; at the sides, a somewhat affected Annunciation ; 
the rampant foliage of the pediment is very unpleasing. 
Altogether this tomb exhibits the last stage of decadent 
Gothic — " the refuse of one style encumbering the embryo 
of another." 

The L. wall is occupied by the immense early Renais- 
sance tomb of Doge Nicolo Tron (d. 1473), also by Rizzo. 
The difference between this and the one opposite, which can 
so readily be compared with it, marks the change which was 
fast coming over Venetian art. As far as purity of design 



no THE CHURCHES [v. 

goes, Rizzo's Renaissance manner is at any rate better than 
his decadent Gothic. This monument is also noticeable as 
being one of the first which has the figure of its occupant 
repeated — once dead, on the sarcophagus, and once, below, 
as an erect living statue. I will not enumerate all the 
separate figures of armed pages displaying shields, the 
Temporal and Theological Virtues, and the host of other 
conventional sculptor's properties with which we are now 
familiar. They are hardly worth individual description. 
The upper portion of the tomb consists of a figure of the 
risen Christ, in the lunette, with an Annunciation, now con- 
ceived in true Renaissance spirit, at the sides ; it has a 
statue of God the Father as a finial. Sumptuous, well- 
worked, empty, unimpressive. The Doge himself is as dull 
as he is ugly : a cunning business man, with no spark of 
nobility. 

The first apsidal chapel beyond the Apse has a fine early 
sarcophagus, with the Madonna and Child, and an Annun- 
ciation. 

The second apsidal chapel. In the altar beneath repose the 
remains of St. Theodore, the original patron of the Republic, 
removed here from the Scuola di San Teodoro, near the 
church of San Salvatore ; nobody now seems to take much 
notice of him. On the L. wall of this chapel is the Renais- 
sance monument of Melchior Trevisan, general of the 
Republic (1500), the sarcophagus (now reduced to an un- 
interesting relic) forming a mere base for the statue of the 
general, and flanked by his pages as supporters. This is the 
last stage reached by the simple sarcophagus tomb. 

The third apsidal chapel is that of the Milanese, belonging 
to the merchants of Milan established in Venice. 

The L. Transept has a delicate small Gothic doorway to 
the R. of the ugly Renaissance one. 

Before passing down the L. Aisle, cast a glance at the 
carved wood stalls in the Choir, which were the seats of the 
Franciscan brethren in this monastery. 

In the L. Aisle is a graceful small doorway, with Our 
Lady and kneeling brethren. 



v.] THE CHURCHES in 

The rood-screen, which shuts off the choir from the 
nave, is late work, unimpressive ; it has the usual Crucifix, 
with Our Lady, St. John, the four Evangelists, and the 
prophets. 

Opposite this screen, in the L. Aisle, is the large Chapel 
of the Baptistery ; it contains the Font, crowned by the 
usual figure of St. John the Baptist (by Sansovino). Over 
this font is a handsome monument, in the style of the Mas- 
segne, with five figures of saints, whom I cannot satisfac- 
torily identify. 

The Altar-piece is also a work in sculpture by the Mas- 
segne : below (later work), in the centre, St. Peter standing : 
at the sides (I think), St. Jerome, St. John the Baptist, St. 
Andrew, and St. Francis or St. Antony of Padua ; above, 
Our Lady and the Child, with four great female saints, St. 
Lucy with the lamp, St. Catharine with the wheel, St. Mary 
Magdalen with the pot of ointment, and St. Claire with the 
cross. (Identifications doubtful.) 

The rest of this Aisle is chiefly given up to the great 
family of the Pesari, who were the chief patrons of the 
Franciscans in Venice. 

Just beyond the door of the Baptistery, with its handsome 
arch, is the late Renaissance tomb of Bishop Jacopo 
Pesaro (d. 1547). This shows fine workmanship, and little 
feeling. The Bishop lies semi-erect on his sarcophagus, 
one of those transitional instances where the recumbent 
figure seems to be trying to raise himself. The bier is 
adorned with plaques of coloured marble and supported 
by two children with their feet on skulls. The canopy is 
characteristic of later Renaissance feeling. Good, but un- 
pleasing. 

The altar beyond this has for its altar-piece the famous 
picture by Titian (removed during the restoration of the 
church to S. Toma, see later). 

Beyond, over the small door of the S. Aisle, stands the 
gigantic, vulgar, and ugly monument of Doge Giovanni 
Pesaro (d. 1659), by Longhena and another. This is the 
worst Baroque work in this church, almost equalling in 



H2 THE CHURCHES [v. 

pretentious vulgarity the tomb of the Valiers in San 
Zanipolo. The boastful character of the monument is shown, 
not only in its vast size, but in its theatrically gesticulating 
Virtues, its fly-away Faith, Hope, and Charity, its oddly 
startled figure of the Doge, jumping forward under the 
canopy of his own sarcophagus (which is supported by 
very fearsome nondescript animals), and, above all, in the 
four figures of captive negroes (black marble faces with 
white eyes) which sustain the whole. The skeletons below 
are in the vilest taste of their period. The bombastic 
Latin inscriptions, exactly paralleling the style of the tomb, 
state that the Doge "lived 70 years," "unlived" (not died), 
"in the year 1659," and "lived again in this monument in 
the year 1669." A monstrous and hideous nightmare. 

Beyond this is the frigidly " correct " modern tomb of the 
sculptor Canova (d. 1822), with finely sculptured but unim- 
pressive figures from his own design for the tomb of Titian. 
Its chilly classicalism, its emptiness of feeling, and its 
blank white spaces produce a cold effect that is eminently 
unpleasing. 

Over the Holy-Water Vessel beyond, statue in bronze of 
the great local Franciscan luminary, St. Antony of Padua, 
by Balthazar Stella. 

End wall, near the door, Renaissance tomb of Pietro 
Bernardo (d. 1538), by Alessandro Leopardi, a piece of very 
fine and delicate workmanship, wasted upon an exceedingly 
ugly and meaningless design. Much of the minor decora- 
tion is, however, most beautiful and graceful ; it deserves to 
be examined rather in detail than as a whole. Mr. Ruskin 
seems to me unjust in his denunciation of this and of many 
other fine early Renaissance monuments. 

The vast Franciscan monastery at the back of the 
church has been converted into the Public Archives. 

The Pictures from the Frari have been removed during 
restoration to the neighbouring church of S. Toraa, The 
visitor shows the ticket of admission to the Frari. 



v.] THE CHURCHES 113 



SAN TOMA. 

The pictures should be studied in the following order : — 

1. A fine altar-piece (by Alvise Vivarini and Basalt?, 
representing St. Ambrose enthroned in the centre, attended 
by other saints. Nearest to the Milanese Father are the 
military patron saints of hospitable Venice — St. George and 
St. Theodore. On the right are the other Doctors of the 
Church usually associated with Ambrose — St. Gregory, St. 
Augustine, and St. Jerome. On the L. are an assorted group 
of miscellaneous saints — Sebastian, John the Baptist, and 
others. At the foot of the throne sit the usual musical 
angels. In the painted loft above is a curious Coronation o: 
the Virgin, evidently by another hand. This very allusive 
altar-piece thus combines devotion to St. Ambrose, as patron 
saint of Milan and as Doctor of the Church, with polite 
recognition of Venetian hospitality, and the usual Adriatic 
desire to propitiate a powerful and useful plague-saint. 

2. * Altar-piece in three sections, by Bartolommeo Vivarini. 
In the centre, Our Lady and Child ; L., St. Andrew and St. 
Nicolas of Myra, with the three balls ; R., St. Paul and St. 
Peter ; above, a Pieta, with gilt wooden adoring angels. 

3. An ^altar-piece in three sections, by Bartolommeo 
Vivarini, still filling its original Gothic tabernacle frame- 
work — the last worthy of inspection. It has in its central 
panel St. Mark enthroned, as patron of Venice, with musical 
angels at his feet. To the L. are St. John the Baptist, and 
St. Jerome holding the church of which he was the luminary ; 
to the R., St. Paul and St. Nicholas (St. Ambrose and St. 
Peter ?). 

4. An exquisite work in three panels, by Giovanni Bellini, 
painted in 1488. This picture, usually known as " the Frari 
Madonna," is perhaps the loveliest of Bellini's Madonnas. 
The picture is enclosed in its charming original frame, the 
decorative work of which is continued in the painted niche of 
the central panel. Our Lady sits enthroned, with a delicately 
soft and tender expression, in a small chapel, like one of 

1 



ri 4 THE CHURCHES [v. 

those in St. Mark's, with a gold mosaic cupola. The Child 
on her knees stands erect and naked. At the foot are two 
charming little angels, playing musical instruments, their 
attitudes more fanciful and their clothing scantier than in 
earlier examples of Bellini's art. These angels are probably 
his most popular single figures. The whole is a sweetly 
mystical and celestial presentment of the Mother of God. 
t The four stately saints on the side panels are noble figures, 
but difficult to discriminate in the absence of symbols. I take 
them (very doubtfully) to be, L., St. Nicholas and St. Peter ; 
R., St. Paul and St. Benedict ; but I am open to correction. 
The entire work is very rich and mellow in colour, gravely 
beautiful, and saintly in feeling. 

5. Titicm's famous **Madonna of the Pesaro family. This 
singular picture, one of the most celebrated of its author's 
works, was painted for the same Bishop, Jacopo Pesaro, 
whose tomb we have examined. A word of explanation is 
necessary here. In 1501, Jacopo Pesaro, who was Bishop of 
Paphos in Cyprus, then still a Venetian possession, was 
appointed by Pope Alexander VI. (Borgia) to the command 
of the Papal fleet in the new crusade at that time being 
undertaken against the Turks by Rome, Venice, and Hun- 
gary. For this occasion Titian painted for the militant 
prelate a very beautiful picture (now at Antwerp), in which 
Pope Alexander VI. introduces to St. Peter the new Admiral 
of the Holy See. On the Bishop's successful return from 
his naval expedition he commissioned Titian to paint this 
second altar-piece as a thanksgiving for his victory. The 
scene is a lofty portico in a soaring church of then unex- 
ampled size, like St. Peter's at Rome. Our Lady sits 
enthroned with the Child near some colossal columns. Just 
below her sits St. Peter, reading, at whose feet are the keys. 
He is disturbed from his book, and looks away towards the 
surrounding figures, as though the Holy See were diverted 
for the moment from its spiritual task to undertake a neces- 
sary military adventure. He gazes down benignantly, as 
does also Our Lady, upon the kneeling figure of the donor, 
Bishop Jacopo Pesaro himself (on the L.), an admirable 



v.] THE CHURCHES 115 

portrait. Behind the bishop, St. George, representing the 
military power of Venice, and extending his arm towards 
the kneeling donor, holds aloft the banner of the Holy See, 
bearing the arms of the Borgias, surmounted by the Papal 
crown, and crowned above with the laurel leaves of victory. 
Behind him, again, bows a captive Turk, a trophy of the 
fighting ecclesiastic's campaign against the Infidel. The 
right-hand side of the picture is occupied by the figures of 
St. Francis and St. Antony of Padua, who represent this 
Franciscan church of the Frari. Beside them kneels Bene- 
detto Pesaro, the head of the house of Pesaro — his tomb is 
in the R. transept — with other members of his family, most 
of them in the crimson robes of Venetian senators (Knights 
of St. Mark). The Franciscan saints seem to commend 
them to Our Lady. Angels, dwindling, after the wont of the 
time, into babes, fill the upper portion of the picture. The 
allegorical meaning of this famous and beautiful work 
deserves a little study. It well exhibits the increasing im- 
portance of the portraits of the donor and his relations, who 
now quite throw into the shade Our Lady and the saints. 
A fine piece of composition, departing boldly from the old 
conventional symmetry — gorgeous colouring, admirable light 
and shade. 

6. Pordenone. Madonna and Child, with Saints Francis, 
Antony of Padua, and Louis of Toulouse. 

The wooden statue of St. John the Baptist, by Donatello, 
has also been brought here temporarily. 

From the little Campo in front of the Frari, you may 
cross the bridge and turn to the L. Cross another bridge, 
and keep along the street a little to the R. ; cross the 
Campo S. Stin, obliquely to the L., when one turn to the L., 
and one to the R., will bring you into the little Campiello di 
San Giovanni. Here you find the portico and remains of 
the once splendid Scuola di San Giovanni Evangelista, 
where was preserved the famous relic of the Holy Cross, 
and whence were brought the Gentile Bellinis now in the 
octagonal room at the Academy. A post in front, dated 



u6 THE CHURCHES [v. 

1554, has brethren of the Fraternity worshipping the Holy 
Cross, with the eagle, the symbol of the Evangelist ; on 
the sides are other symbols. The gateway is in the style of 
the Lombardi ; it is surmounted by the Holy Cross, with 
adoring angels ; in the lunette, the eagle of the Evangelist. 
The door and windows have fine Renaissance decoration. 
The courtyard has late Gothic windows with florid finials. 
The rest of its architecture is early Renaissance. Over the 
main door is a figure of St. John ; under a lunette to the L., 
the Evangelist receiving the members of the Fraternity, 
with Our Lady and the Child above. This gate, portico, 
and court are a picturesque relic of what was once a very 
stately Guildhall. The interior only deserves a brief visit 
for the sake of its still handsome rooms, of its empty church, 
and of the pictures which once adorned it, now in the 
Academy. 

SAN ROCCO, AND THE SCUOLA DI SAN ROCCO. 

[The most peculiarly Venetian of the plague-saints of the 
city is St. Roch or San Rocco, whose actual body lies in the 
church named after him, as the body of St. Mark lies in 
the Ducal Chapel. This body was in the fifteenth century 
one of the most precious possessions of Venice. 

St. Roch (born about 1285) was a native of Montpellier 
in Languedoc, who devoted his life to nursing the sick in 
hospitals. (If possible, before visiting the buildings, read 
his life in full in Mrs. Jameson's Sacred and Legendary Artj 
I epitomise here as much of his history as is absolutely 
necessary for comprehension of the church and Scuola.) 
At Piacenza, while nursing in the hospital, he found himself 
plague-stricken ; an ulcer had broken out on his left thigh, 
and, in devotional pictures, he is generally represented 
raising his robe to show this deadly symptom. Supported by 
his pilgrim's staff (always his attribute in art), he crawled 
feebly to a wood, where his little dog alone attended him, and 
brought him a loaf once a day miraculously from the city. 
An angel also dressed his wound and healed him. His 
subsequent adventures are immaterial ; he died, unknown 



v.] THE CHURCHES 117 

and a prisoner, in his native town : but on the strength of 
these episodes he became a local plague-saint of great 
renown at Montpellier, elsewhere unimportant till the fif- 
teenth century. In 14 14, however, during the sittings of the 
Council of Constance, an epidemic of plague broke out in 
that city ; and on the advice of a German monk who had 
travelled in Languedoc, the effigy of St. Roch was carried 
in procession through the streets to abate it : whereupon the 
pestilence shortly disappeared. This episode gave the man 
of Montpellier great vogue as a plague-saint. In 1485, 
during the ravages of a plague in Venice, certain Venetian 
conspirators stole the body of St. Roch from its shrine at 
Montpellier and carried it off to their own city, where it was 
publicly received by the Doge and senators. A splendid 
church was at once designed to cover it, and a community, 
already existing for the care of the sick poor, engaged 
themselves to pay for its erection. The stately guild-house 
of this brotherhood adjoins the church, and is decorated by 
noble frescoes of Tintoretto and his pupils. Tintoretto 
(Jacopo Robusti), the last great painter ofVenice(i 5 18-1594), 
worked here for eighteen years, having received the com- 
mission to paint the whole Scuola. His works in this hall 
are technically of the highest merit, for draughtsmanship, 
composition, and contrasts of light and shade. He was a 
colossal and indefatigable genius, full of imagination and 
audacity : but he often spoiled his finest works by his love of 
display, his inveterate habit of posture-making, and his in- 
ability to resist showing off his powers of drawing, especially 
as regards figures in violent action. No great artist has been 
more variously appreciated. 

The Scuola is open daily from 10 to 3, 1 franc per person. 
Morning light desirable. The guards, provided by the 
custodians, to screen the eyes from side lights, will be found 
of \great assistance.] 

San Rocco is best visited from the steamboat station of 
San Toma. Thence, strike as straight inland as you can go, 
past San Toma Church, till you come to the gigantic Gothic 



u8 THE CHURCHES [v. 

mass of the Frari. The passage to the L. of this huge brick 
building leads into a square. In front of you rises the 
church of San Rocco. To the L. you see the palatial 
Renaissance facade of the Scuola. The authorities un- 
fortunately compel you to visit the latter first. Note before 
doing so the lofty and imposing marble front of the Scuola, 
early Renaissance, somewhat Roman in type, 15 17, a princely 
specimen of Venetian architecture. 

Enter by the far door on the R., near a wooden figure 
of San Rocco lifting his robe to show his plague-spot. Pay 
1 franc each person, for the Church and Scuola inclusive. 
The word Scuola means a religious fraternity or charitable 
guild. 

You reach, first, the lower hall of the Scuola, far less 
handsome than the upper. All the pictures hereafter enumer- 
ated are by Tintoretto, unless I state to the contrary. Those 
who wish for a complete analysis of these celebrated works, 
longer than can be undertaken within the compass of this 
Guide, may turn to the third volume of Ruskin's Stofies of 
Venice, where they are enthusiastically rather than critically 
described. A good and more moderate account is also given 
of them in Karl Karoly's Painti?tgs of Venice. Catalogues 
on panels are provided in each room ; I will therefore only 
call special attention to those works which particularly 
refer to the central purpose of the Church and Scuola. 

L. wall, opposite to you as you enter, Scenes from the 
Infancy : Annunciation, * Adoration of the Magi, Flight 
into Egypt, and Slaughter of the Innocents ; all highly 
characteristic of the comparative realism which Tintoretto 
introduced into sacred subjects. 

It is noticeable that it is not the figures in the pictures 
which arouse interest, it is the romantic setting or the land- 
scape background. For instance, in the Flight into Egypt, 
Madonna is beautifully painted, she is gracious, simple in 
mien, yet she and her child are not the real subject of the 
picture. What moves us is the interminable range of valley 
and mountain lying in the fullness of Italian sunshine. 
Tintoretto has transfigured the glory of the woodland. It 



v.] THE CHURCHES 119 

is no more the flight from Bethlehem that stimulates us, 
what we see is the garden of the world pictured in the 
imagination of a great painter. The small pictures to the 
L. and R. of the altar (ill seen) represent the two desert 
female saints, St. Mary Magdalen and St. Mary of Egypt, 
in dark landscapes. They typify the desolate condition of 
the plague-stricken. Over the altar, statue of San Rocco 
(by Campagna), lifting his robe, as usual, with his pilgrim 
staff, and the dog that brought him bread in the wilder- 
ness. (Wilderness subjects are naturally characteristic of 
this Scuola.) R. wall, between the staircases, Circumcision 
of Christ ; beyond it, Assumption of Our Lady. 

Mount the staircase. 

First landing, over the opening on the R., * Annunciation, 
by Titian; over the opening on the L., "^Visitation, by 
Tintoretto. 

On the sides of the upper staircase, late Renaissance 
pictures (seventeenth century) representing the plague, with 
the intercession of Our Lady. In the dome overhead, by 
Pellegrini, San Rocco introducing to Charity a personage 
symbolical of the Scuola di San Rocco. 

The splendid upper hail of the Fraternity — a magnificent 
and palatial apartment — is decorated throughout with paint- 
ings by Tintoretto. The place of honour over the altar is 
occupied by an altar-piece of the Glorification of San Rocco 
amid the plague-stricken ; L. and R. are statues by Cam- 
pagna of St. Sebastian and St. John the Baptist— the first 
as a companion plague-saint, the second as the first and 
most typical saint of the wilderness. He foreshadows San 
Rocco in the wilds near Piacenza. 

Around the walls are New Testament pictures, parallels 
to events in the life of San Rocco. The servant follows the 
Master. 

L. wall (beginning at the end remote from the altar), 
Adoration of the Shepherds, Baptism of Christ, Resurrec- 
tion, Agony in the Garden, Last Supper ; curiously arranged 
so that the more important picture occupies the central wall 
between the windows. 



120 THE CHURCHES [v. 

R. wall, beginning at the same end, Loaves and Fishes, 
Raising of Lazarus, Ascension, Pool of Bethesda, Tempta- 
tion in the Wilderness. Note the relation of most of these 
subjects to the trial of the Christian by the plague — the 
Pool of Bethesda representing healing ; the Temptation in 
the Wilderness symbolising the sifting of the faithful by 
sickness ; the Raising of Lazarus, the unexpected recovery 
of serious cases, and so forth. 

On the end wall, between the windows (almost im- 
possible to see), the brother plague-patrons, San Rocco and 
St. Sebastian. 

I am not myself a Tintoretto enthusiast, and therefore 
I feel incompetent to criticise these fine and pregnant 
pictures ; for rapturous comment, I must refer the reader 
to Ruskin. But they need little explanation of the kind 
which it is the purpose of these Guides to afford ; and 
they should be carefully studied by the visitor at his 
leisure on his own account. 

The ceiling contains, in its great central panel, the 
Plague of Serpents and Raising of the Brazen Serpent ; 
subjects obviously symbolical of the plague. The square 
panels on either side of this compartment represent Moses 
Striking the Rock and the Fall of the Manna, both clearly 
typical of healing. Elijah and the Angel prefigures St. Roch 
and the Angel. All the other subjects of this ceiling, which 
are fully described on the small hand-screens supplied by 
the custodian, are symbolical of, or parallel with, the 
episodes in the life of San Rocco described in the Introduc- 
tion. Daniel in the Den of Lions and the Three Children 
in the Furnace typify the trial of the Christian by suffering 
— and so forth. 

The large door at the bottom of the hall (remote from the 
altar) leads into the Sala del Albergo, or guest-room of the 
Brotherhood, the finest apartment of this regal charity. Its 
general decorations afford a good picture of the wealth and 
dignity of the opulent old Venetian fraternities. 

The principal wall, which faces you, has Tintoretto's 
masterpiece, **the Crucifixion ; it requires careful study. 



v.] THE CHURCHES 121 

The other works represent episodes of the Passion. On the 
ceiling is the Reception of San Rocco in Heaven by God 
the Father ; around are allegorical figures representing the 
various virtues of the patron saint. 

The Treasury contains some fine specimens of gold- 
smith's work of the sixteenth and seventeenth centuries, 
also some Ecclesiastical Vestments. 

At the entrance is an iron coffer used for the transporting 
of relics to Venice. 

On the staircase, the state chair of the Doge. At the 
top of the stairs are two pictures by Tiepolo — Abraham 
and the Angels, and Hagar visited by Angels in the Desert. 

In the upper room, a Processional Cross of 1500, with 
the symbols of the Evangelists and the figures of S. Rocco 
and S. Sebastiano on the arms. 

A Baldacchino carried in processions. 

In the centre case, The Rule of the Confraternity of 1485. 

No. 3. An Ivory Pax. 6. A Triptych, French. 14. A 
Pieta, with S. Rocco and S. Sebastiano, of the seventeenth 
century. 

16. A Paten, with the Nativity in the centre, work of the 
seventeenth century. 

15. A Chalice, which was used by Pius VI I. 

20. A Reliquary containing a finger of St. John the 
Baptist. 

In a case at the end, a fine Processional Cross, with 
evangelists on one side and prophets on the other. 

In the cases against the wall, a magnificent carpet used 
on the day of the saint, vestments, funeral palls, staff ot 
S. Rocco covered with silver. 



On leaving the Scuola, cross the narrow passage to the 
door opposite 

SAN ROCCO. 

The church of San Rocco, built in 1490, was entirely 
modernised in the eighteenth century, and possesses an ugly 
late Baroque fagade, only interesting from the numerous 
figures of the saint which adorn it. 



122 THE CHURCHES [v. 

The interior is bare and ugly. Over the first altar to the 
R. is a plague- picture by Rizzi, representing a late plague- 
patron, St. Francis of Paola, resuscitating a dead child. On 
the wall beyond it, below, the Impotent Man at the Pool of 
Bethesda waiting for the troubling of the waters, symbolical 
of the plague-stricken looking to Christ for succour, a large 
confused, unpleasant picture ; above, San Rocco in the 
wilderness, with the dog bringing him bread from the city ; 
to the R. and L. of this, suppliants imploring the saint for 
succour ; all these by Tintoretto. 

In the choir, High Altar, a figure of San Rocco, baring 
his leg to show the plague-spot ; to the R. and L., St. Sebas- 
tian and the desert Father, St. Jerome. On the walls, R. 
side, below, San Rocco attending the plague-stricken in the 
Hospital ; above, San Rocco healing the diseases of animals ; 
L. side, above, the capture of San Rocco at Montpellier ; 
below, the angel appears to the dying San Rocco in prison. 
The subjects are confused and difficult to understand. In 
the chapel, R. of the choir, is a remarkable picture of Christ 
led to Calvary, generally ascribed to Titian, but possibly 
the work of Giorgione. This painting is of great value as 
one of the few existing examples of the new style introduced 
by these two men. Art as it had been practised by the 
Vivarini and the Bellini in Venice was profoundly influenced 
by the genius of Giorgione and Titian. This head of Christ 
exhibits the characteristics of the new romantic style, the 
poetic insight, the imaginative treatment, the picturesque 
quality. The other pictures in the church are uninteresting. 
I have brought you here thus early mainly in order to make 
you feel the importance of these plague-churches and 
plague-pictures at Venice. 

San Rocco may be visited with great advantage at a later 
stage, after you have traced the evolution of Venetian 
painting at the Academy ; you may then read Ruskin's 
elucidatory comments face to face with the pictures which 
called them forth. I do not deal with them here as works of 
art, but rather as elements in the plague-protective arrange- 
ments of contemporary Venice. 



v.] THE CHURCHES 123 

Group C. 

S. SALVATORE. S. GIOVANNI CRISOSTOMO. 
S. MARIA DEI MIRACOLI. 

S. SALVATORE. 

Leave the Piazza San Marco by the opening under the 
Clock Tower, and go down the narrow street known as the 
Merceria, until the church of S. Salvatore is reached. 

The exterior, in the style of the sixteenth century, is 
uninteresting. 

In the interior : To the left of the High Altar, in the 
Choir, is a picture attributed to Giovanni Bellini. Christ 
and the disciples are seated in a stately room with fine 
columns. Christ, youthful and with a benign expression, has 
a man wearing a turban on the right, and a Venetian official 
on the left, and beyond are two travellers or countrymen. 
The detail of the table, the food, etc., is painted with great 
care ; a quail steps daintily in the foreground. As a whole 
the impression received is that of a conventional composi- 
tion. 

Opposite, to the right of the choir, the Martyrdom of S. 
Theodore, by Bonifazio ; over the High Altar, Titian's 
Tra?isfiguration, painted like the Annunciation, also in 
this church, in the artist's old age. 

In the right Transept is a monument to Queen Catharine 
Cornaro ; she is seen renouncing the crown of Cyprus in 
favour of the Doge in 1489. 

In the left Transept is a monument to the Cardinals of 
the Corner family. 

In the nave there are several monuments characteristic at 
once of the Venetian love of ostentatious display, and of the 
art of the sixteenth and early seventeenth centuries. Begin 
at the west end of the church, to the R., monument of 
Andrea Dolfino (d. 1602), by Scamozzi, 1 552-1616. 

Altar, by Campagna, Mado?i?ia and Child, a heavy and 
elaborate composition without grace. 

Monument of Francesco Venier (d. 1556), by Jacopo 



124 THE CHURCHES [v. 

Sansovino, with figures of Hope and Charity. The figure 
of the Doge is effective, and the style of the monument is 
dignified when compared with Scamozzi's work. 

Near the transept is Titian's Annunciation. The Virgin 
starts up in surprise at the sight of Gabriel attended 
by a band of gay and radiant child-angels. 

On the left of the Nave, beginning at the west end, is an 
immense monument to the two brothers, Doges Girolamo 
and Lorenzo Priuli, by Cesare Franco ; the figures are gilt. 

The doors of the organ casing have paintings of saints 
by Franceso Vecelli ; the Cantoria is by Sansovino. 



SAN GIOVANNI CRISOSTOMO. 

Near the Rialto Bridge. 

In the right Aisle, the central altar-piece is by Giovanni 
Bellini, painted in 15 13, two years before he died. St. 
Christopher, holding his staff with both hands and carrying 
the Child, is on the right under an archway. To the left is 
St. Augustine in full ecclesiastical splendour. Beyond the 
archway, and raised above the heads of the foregoing figures, 
is St. Jerome reading. In the distance, a range of moun- 
tains is relieved against a sky with the sun low on the 
horizon. The figures are immobile, one can hardly conceive 
it possible for them to move. A benign calm rests on the 
scene ; the saints yield their wills passively to a Power that 
embraces all desire : and yet there is no contemplation as 
the scholastics imagined it, in which high intellect, great 
emotional power, and deep spiritual gifts were absorbed in 
the presence of the Infinite. Here, it is a genial sentiment, 
instinctively at one with all things, knowing nothing of the 
storm and turmoil of life — perhaps a Christian version of 
Nirvana, a Sabbath in which there is no evening. The 
figures at the sides of the picture, Saints Agatha and 
Andrew, are attributed to one of the Vivarini. 

Almost equally fine is an exceptionally noble *Sebastiano 
del Piombo, representing the patron of the church, St. John 
Chrysostom, and therefore occupying the place of honour on 




Photograph: Hanfstangl 

" DOROTHEA " 

A Painting by Sebastiano del Piombo, painted about 1520 

(Now in Beklin) 

Compare with the Altarpiece by Sebastiano in S. Giovanni Crisostomo 



v.] THE CHURCHES 125 

:he High Altar. The great Greek Father — a good instance 
of the survival of Byzantine hagiology in Venice — is seated 
in an open portico, reading and transcribing. Close by, his 
patron, St. John the Baptist, gazes at him with fatherly 
affection. Behind stand St. Augustine and San Liberale. 
On the left are three beautiful female saints — Catharine, 
with her wheel, Lucy, with her lamp, and Mary Magdalene, 
with her pot of ointment, as if entering suddenly. This is a 
fine example of the later informal arrangement of the Santa 
Conversazione, and it is also a good specimen of Sebastiano 
del Piombo's early Giorgionesque manner, before he came 
under the influence of Michael Angelo. It is thoroughly 
Venetian in type, and its drawing and colouring recall 
Giorgione. The luxurious women saints are specially 
characteristic of Sebastiano, and are obviously laying them- 
selves out, not to be saintly, but to be attractive and 
charming. Note the contrast between the simple, quiet, 
unemotional women in Carpaccio's Presentation, in the 
Academy, and these massive young matrons, fit to take 
their place in gorgeous ceremonial, and to add to that 
material magnificence so dear to the Venetian. 

On the left side of the church, a relief by Tullio Lom- 
bardo (1453-1547). The Coronation of Our Lady, a dull 
and unimaginative work. 



SANTA MARIA DEI MIRACOLI. 

The building is encased with marble panelling within and 
without. There are also crosses, medallions, etc., inlaid with 
"marbles of deeper colour. On the exterior the walls are 
spaced by flat pilasters ; these, with the string-courses and 
the window-jambs, are decorated with delicate carvings of 
Renaissance type, in which foliage, birds, and human masks 
are intermingled. 

The east end of the church is square, and it is roofed 
by a dome. 

In the interior the marble panelling is of warmer colour; 
the roof is richly coffered and painted by Girolamo da 



126 THE CHURCHES [v. 

Treviso. On the pendentives of the dome over the east end 
are reliefs of the four Evangelists. 

A single panel over the entrance by Palma Vecchio, 
represents the Immaculate Conception. The floor is an 
elaborate mosaic in marble, less effective than when the 
work is treated on broader lines. 

The Choir is reached by a flight of steps ; the Pulpit 
at each side, and the balustrade, are of marble, and the 
latter is very richly carved. 

At the corners of the staircase are small half-length statu- 
ettes of St. Francis, St. Chiara, the Angel of the Annunciation, 
and Mary. To the left is a tabernacle for relics, of common- 
place design, executed in rich material. The columns which 
support the Choir arch have relief of the four seasons, and 
richly carved vases. 

To the R. and L. of the Altar are statuettes of SS. Peter 
and Anthony the Abbot, by Alessandro Vittoria (1525- 1608). 

Over the altar is the miracle-working picture of Madonna, 
by Niccolo da Venezia (fourteenth century). The Sacristy is 
below the High Altar. In the passage is an unfinished copy 
of Leonardo's Last Supper in relief, by Tullio Lombardi. 
To the R. of the altar is a small relief attributed to Donatello, 
and to the R. and L. are statues of SS. Francis and Chiara, 
by Campagna (1 552-1623). 

In the nave, the two pillars near the entrance are marvels 
of Renaissance carving ; on the one to the R. is a relief of 
Adam and Eve. 



Group D. 

S. M. FORMOSA. S. GIOVANNI E PAOLO. 
S. FRANCESCO DELLA VIGNA. 

Santa Maria Formosa, a very old foundation, but with a 
building of little interest, is visited chiefly for one superb 
picture, in the first chapel to the right, by Palma Vecchio, 
doubtless the finest thing its master ever painted — a ** Santa 
Barbara erect between four other saints. Owing to her 



v.] THE CHURCHES 127 

legendary connection with towers St. Barbara became the 
patroness of artillery and fortification, and this altar (the 
first on the right) was that of the guild of Bombardieri, who 
thus commemorated their chosen lady. The cannon at 
St. Barbara's feet bear out the allusion. She is represented 
as a singularly queenly and beautiful woman, with a noble 
carriage of the head and throat ; crowned as princess with 
a most military crown, and holding in her hand the palm of 
her martyrdom. Her robe is glorious. Nothing more 
stately or majestic ever proceeded out of the later school of 
Venice. 

This striking example of a commonplace type may be 
profitably compared with the fifteenth-century rendering by 
Pinturicchio in the Borgia Apartments of the Vatican, 
where the legend of St. Barbara is more fully illustrated and 
her connection with the Tower explained. The other saints 
are, R., St. Antony and St. Dominic ; L., St. Sebastian and 
St. John Baptist. In the lunette, a Pieta. 

In the next chapel there is an uninteresting altar-piece by 
Bartolommeo Vivarmt. To the left, the meeting of Joachim 
and Anna ; to the right, the Birth of the Virgin ; in the 
centre, Mary, as the Mother of Mercy, enveloping those who 
invoke her protection in the folds of her mantle. 



SS. GIOVANNI E PAOLO. 

[During St. Dominic's own lifetime the Dominican Order 
which he founded sent out missionaries to all parts of 
Europe. Already in 1234 the Brothers possessed an oratory 
in Venice on the very site now occupied by their lordly 
church, but it was small and unobtrusive. In that year, 
however, Doge Giacomo Tiepolo, a friend of the order, 
dreamed that he saw this little preaching-hall of the Domini- 
cans with the ground all round it (now occupied by the 
church) covered with a celestial growth of roses, while white 
doves with golden crosses on their heads flitted among them. 
(Remember this dream ; it will help to explain a tomb at the 
door of the church.) Angels then descended from heaven 



128 THE CHURCHES [v. 

with censers, and a voice from above exclaimed, " This is 
the place that I have chosen for my Preachers." (The 
official Dominican title is "Order of Preachers.") The 
Doge told his dream to the Senate, who decided that forty 
paces of ground should be given to enlarge the oratory ; 
and the Doge himself later increased the gift, on which 
account he is regarded as the pious founder. 

The church was begun in 1234, but not entirely finished 
and consecrated till 1430. It thus exemplifies several suc- 
cessive stages in the evolution of Venetian Gothic. It is 
dedicated to Saints John and Paul, not the Apostles, but 
the obscure Roman brothers, Christian soldiers said to 
have been martyred under Julian the Apostate. (See Mrs. 
Jameson.) The original Dominicans in Venice were emi- 
grants from the monastery of St. John and St. Paul at Rome, 
and they carried their local patrons with them. The true 
title of the church is thus Santi Giovanni e Paolo ; but the 
Venetians have a curious habit of rolling their saints into 
one, and generally speak of it as San Zanipolo. 

The dead bodies of the Doges lay in state in this church ; 
and most of them, after the date of its erection, were 
buried here. There was no more room by that time in St. 
Mark's for them. 

Bear in mind also that this is a Dominican church, and 
expect to find Dominican saints and symbols. 

Above all, San Giovanni e Paolo is the church which most 
commemorates the heroic resistance of Venice to the 
Turk. Most of the great Christian commanders who 
checked the disastrous progress of the Infidel in the Levant 
are buried here ; and the later Doges came yearly on the 
7th of October to a solemn thanksgiving service for the great 
victory in the Dardanelles which saved Europe. It is like- 
wise the chief church of the powerful Mocenigo, Morosini, 
Venier, and Vendramin families.] 

Santi Giovanni e Paolo may be approached either by 
gondola, or (better) on foot from the Piazza. If the latter, 
pass under the gilded Clock Tower and along the Merceria 



■i - c* 







-F 





FROM THE EQUESTRIAN STATUE OF GATTAMELATA 

AT PADUA 

Made by Donatello, 1448-1453 

Compare with the Colleoni Statue by Verrocchio and Leopardi 



v.] THE CHURCHES 129 

as far as the church of San Giuliano. Turn here to the R. 
(Embedded in the wall of the house on your L. just before 
you reach the church is a small and good fifteenth -century 
relief of St. George and the Dragon, highly, perhaps too 
highly, praised by Mr. Ruskin.) Continue on to the back of 
the church, and proceed by the straight narrow street (Calle 
di Guerra) as far as the white church of Santa Maria 
Formosa. There, turn to the L., and cross the pretty little 
Campo obliquely into the Calle Lunga. Do not take the last 
turn to the' L. before you reach the first bridge (which the 
map will show you to be the shortest way to San Giovanni) : 
it is narrow and malodorous. Instead of that, continue 
along the Calle Lunga until you reach the first canal (Rio di 
San Severo), which follow, and cross two bridges in a straight 
line, until you come out at the atrocious baroque facade of 
the Ospedaletto : " diseased figures and swollen fruit," 
Ruskin well calls its decorations. Here, the vast and lofty 
brick apse of San Giovanni e Paolo looms up picturesquely 
on the L. before you. This is the most imposing portion of 
the exterior of the building, striking in virtue of its immense 
height and the absence of buttresses ; and though recently 
restored, it is still very beautiful. Go round to the back and 
look at it. Then continue to the L. into the open Campo di 
San Giovanni e Paolo, which contains the magnificent 
**equestrian statue of Bartolommeo Colleoni, and also 
the fine early Renaissance facade of the Scuola di San 
Marco. As I know I cannot induce you to enter the church 
till you have examined these, I may as well give way, seat 
you quietly on the steps of the bridge, and say here what 
there is to say about them. 

Bartolommeo Colleoni uas a famous condottiere, or soldier 
of fortune, in the service of Venice. On his death, in 1475, 
he left the whole of his immense fortune to the Republic, on 
condition that his statue should be erected in the Piazza San 
Marco (like Gattamelata's before the Santo at Padua). This 
being contrary to law, the senate trickily evaded the condi- 
tion by erecting it in the Campo of the Scuola di San Marco. 
The statue was first designed by Andrea Verrocchio, the 



130 THE CHURCHES [v. 

Florentine painter aud sculptor, and master of Leonardo da 
Vinci. 

Andrea died before it was completed (after having once 
broken the model in a quarrel with the signory), and the 
task of finishing the work was given to the Venetian artist 
Alessandro Leopardi (modeller of the fine bronze flagstaff's 
on the Piazza), to whom the statue as it stands is mainly 
due. It was he also who designed the beautiful slender 
pedestal. With the possible exception of Donatello's Gatta- 
melata, in front of the Santo at Padua, this is doubtless the 
noblest equestrian statue of the Italian Renaissance. Its 
effect is positively increased by the slimness and evident 
inadequacy of the graceful pedestal, which makes the rider 
look as though he were about to walk his horse unconsci- 
ously over a yawning precipice. The face and figure form a 
perfect embodiment of the ideal of an Italian soldier of 
fortune — erect, stern-featured, able, remorseless, with deep- 
set eyes and haughty expression. Examine it on all sides. 
The rich detail lavished on the accessories heightens the 
effect of the stern simplicity shown in the horse and rider. 
There is no posturing. 

A little to the E. of the statue is a fine well-head, with 
amorini, of Renaissance workmanship. 

Now, sit down again near the bridge over the canal, and 
look up at the fagade of the Scuola di San Marco, erected 
in 1485 by Martino Lombardo, and forming an admirable 
specimen of the peculiar Venetian style of early Renaissance 
architecture introduced by the Lombardi. It should be 
compared with the extremely similar front of San Zaccaria, 
in order to form a general idea of their principles of decora- 
tion. The fagade is richly coated with coloured marble, and 
its sculptured subjects are those suited to its original object, 
that of the charitable Fraternity of St. Mark. It is now 
used as a public hospital (Ospedale Civile). 

Topping the main lunette is a figure of the patron. St. 
Mark, with statues on either side, representing our now 
familiar friends, the Theological and Cardinal Virtues 
Beneath stands the lion of St. Mark, with the Venetian 



v.] THE CHURCHES 131 

motto. Over the main portal, Charity carrying a child ; in 
the lunette of the portal, St. Mark enthroned, surrounded by 
the brethren of the Fraternity. On either side of the portal, 
lions in feigned perspective. On the ground floor to the R. 
are perspective reliefs of the miracles of the patron saint, in 
picture-like loggias ; L., he cures the cobbler Anianus ; R., 
he baptises at Alexandria ; in both cases, as usual, the 
pagans are figured as Mohammedan orientals. 

The fine early-Renaissance decorative work, which 
strikes the keynote of the Lombardi treatment, should be 
carefully examined throughout, both with the naked eye and 
with an opera-glass. 

This was one of the greatest among the Venetian Scuole; 
from it came several fine works at the Academy, relating to 
St. Mark — the glorious Paris Bordone of the Doge and the 
Fisherman, the Tintoretto of St. Mark and the Tortured 
Slave, as well as the Mansuetis in the apse of the suppressed 
church, and several other pictures duly noted in their own 
places. These once made it a treasure-house of art, like 
San Rocco. 

I do not advise a visit to the interior ; but you may stand 
on the bridge (decorated with ugly grotesque heads of the 
worst period), in order to get a view of the side facade to- 
wards the canal. 

You may now proceed to the examination of San Gio= 
vanni e Paolo itself, with which of course the Scuola has 
nothing more than a topographical connection. 

The West Front, unfinished, in brick, is heavy and 
featureless, but has a fine late portal, Gothic in form though 
Renaissance in treatment. L. of the door stands the 
sarcophagus of the founder, Doge Giacomo Tiepolo, and his 
brother, Doge Lorenzo Tiepolo, bearing a curious long 
Latin verse inscription, and a shorter one below, which states 
that "the Lord Giacomo died in 125 1 ; the Lord Lorenzo in 
1275." At the sides are angels swinging censers ; above, 
between two ducal caps or berrettas are doves crowned with 
crosses, both these as in the Doge's dream. R. of the door 
is the Angel of the Annunciation, good semi-classical work 



i 3 2 THE CHURCHES [v. 

of the seventh century ; the Madonna corresponding to it 
is now missing. Further R., Daniel in the lions' den, of the 
eighth century, treated still in the simple old Roman 
fashion. Beneath are the plain sarcophagi of early Doges ; 
note the archaic simplicity of these for comparison with the 
ornate fiddle-faddle tombs of their successors in the interior. 

The architecture of the south side (best viewed from 
below the step of the Campo) is vast and imposing, with its 
lofty dome, chapels, and transepts, but has little beauty. 
Those, however, who approach by water should walk along 
it and through the narrow street at the end, in order to view 
the splendid apse already noticed. The other side of the 
church is built into the now secularised monastic buildings. 
Several early sarcophagi and fragments of sculpture (worth 
inspection) are embedded in the wall of the south side also. 
(Admission, 50 cents.) 

The interior is unimpressively striking by its colossal 
size and the vastness of its parts, but has been much dis- 
figured by rococo additions. The lofty nave and aisles, 
however, are effective by virtue of their dignity and height, 
though they lack the crowded perspective of numerous rows 
of columns. The general plan is simple — a Nave, single 
Aisles (with large chapels built out on the S. side), short 
Transepts, an Apse, and two Apsidal Chapels on each side 
of it. 
R. or South Aisle. 

r. of the door, on the end wall, the immense tomb of 
Doge Pietro Mocenigo, by Pietro Lombardo and his sons, 
Tullio and Antonio. This is another specimen of the 
sumptuous and costly Renaissance monuments, exquisite in 
decoration and splendid in finish, but wholly lacking in 
spiritual feeling. Three figures of captives (representing, I 
think, the three ages of man) support the sarcophagus of 
the Doge, which bears an inscription in Latin, " From the 1 
spoils of the enemy." (Note in this and later tombs the 1 
increasing desire to veil the nature and shape of the sarco- 
phagus by decorative adjuncts.) Above stands Pietro him- 
self, witb two pages ; by the side are armed allegorical 



v.] THE CHURCHES 133 

figures ; and over the top is the Doge's patron St. Peter. 
The relief beneath, which is almost the only piece of Chris- 
tian symbolism on the monument, represents the Resurrec- 
tion ; it is counteracted below by Hercules with the lion and 
the Hydra. You will see in many of these later tombs how 
the recumbent figure of the deceased has risen from the 
sarcophagus, and now stands erect above it. 

On the south wall (Right Aisle), relief of Christ en- 
throned, between two flying angels, forming the tomb of 
Doge Ranieri Zen (d. 1268). Above it, a fine Renaissance 
sarcophagus, of the school of Leopardi, highly decorated, 
marks the tomb of Admiral Girolamo Canal (d. 1535). 

First altar, altar-piece by Bissolo, Our Lady enthroned, 
with Franciscan saints, Francis and Bernardino ; at the 
sides, the four Fathers of the Church (Jerome, Augustine, 
Gregory, Ambrose) ; behind, St. John the Baptist and St. 
Peter. An intrusive Franciscan work in this Dominican 
church ; a modern substitution ; it replaces a Bellini burnt 
in 1867 ; see later. 

The next large monument, over the Confessional, is the 
tomb of Marc' Antonio Bragadino, the heroic defender of 
Famagosta, in Cyprus, against the Turks (d. 1596). Un- 
interesting in itself, this big and ugly work commemorates a 
singular act of treachery ; Bragadino, who had surrendered 
on terms, was tortured and flayed alive by the Turks — as the 
picture above shows. 

The second altar, that of St. Vincent^ has a much- 
debated altar-piece, variously attributed to Carpaccio, Alvise 
Vivarini, and others. It seems to me to be by different 
hands. Below, St. Vincent, the patron ; L., St. Christopher, 
wading with the infant Christ ; and R., St. Sebastian. 
Above, a Pieta ; at its sides, an Annunciation in two 
sections. 

Beyond it, tomb of the Procurator Alvise Michiel (1589). 

Pass the gaudy and over-decorated chapel beyond this, 
and stand for a moment opposite the truly appalling monu- 
ment of Doge Bertuccio Valier, his son Silvestro, and his 
son's wife, Elizabetta Quirini (1708). This is the largest 



i 3 4 THE CHURCHES [v. 

tomb in the church, and a unique monument of atrocious 
taste. A huge dingy-yellow curtain is sustained by cupid- 
like angels, the lineal descendants of the beautiful and simple 
Pisan angels who draw the curtains on the tomb of Doge 
Andrea Dandolo in the Baptistery of San Marco. Note here- 
after the gradual evolution of these angels — many examples 
in Venice will help you. The theatrical figures of the two 
Doges, and of the vulgar, ugly, and overdressed old Dogar- 
essa, in eighteenth-century costume, are as bad as art can 
make them. The accessories match in tastelessness the 
central subject. Flounces and furbelows — virtues, victories, 
genii, and lions. All bombast and rodomontade. 

Beyond these opens the chapel of St. Dominic, founder 
of the order, enriched with six dull reliefs in bronze by 
Mazza(i67o), telling in theatrical style the usual episodes 
from the life of St. Dominic. The roof is painted by Tiepolo. 

The R. Transept has a fine sixteenth-century stained- 
glass window, with St. George, St. Theodore, and other 
military and Franciscan saints, after a design by the 
Vivarini. 

R. wall of Transept, under glass, *Bartolommeo Viva- 
rini, noble figure of St. Augustine, one of the best works of 
the master. Beyond it, perhaps by Cima, Coro?zation of the 
Virgin, in an assemblage of saints and angels. Above this, 
gilt equestrian monument of Nicolo Orsini, general of the 
Republic in the war against the League of Cambrai (d. 1509), 
obviously suggested by the Colleoni outside the church. 
End wall of Transept, first altar, * Lorenzo Lotto, Glory 
of St. Antoninus, of Florence, one of the painter's finest 
works, but unfortunately darkened, and ill seen in its present 
position. Angels whisper inspiration to the enthroned saint. 
Beneath him the priests, his deputies, receive petitions and 
distribute alms to the poor, assembled at the base of the 
work. Fine silvery colour. (During the reparation of this 
part of the church this picture is hung in the chapel of 
the Rosary.) 

The door of exit under the window is formed by the tomb 
of General Dionigi Naldo (d. 15 10). 



v.] THE CHURCHES 135 

Altar to L. of the door, altar-piece by Rocco Marconi, 
Christ with St. Peter and St. Andrew. (At present in the 
chapel of the Rosary.) There is a replica of this work in the 
Academy, where it can be seen to greater advantage. 

First Choir chapel (Chapel of the Crucifix), fine recum- 
bent Gothic tomb of Paolo Loredan (1365). This is a 
knightly image of a sort more common in the north than in 
Italy ; on the simple sarcophagus his name-saint, St. Paul, 
and two angels. 

Second Chapel (of St. Mary Magdalen). On the altar, a 
late Renaissance statue of the Magdalen, only recognised 
as such by her pot of ointment ; otherwise, a mere voluptuous 
Venetian courtesan. The framework is better. L. wall, 
monument of Marco Giustiniani, ambassador of the Republic 
to the Scaligers (d. 1347); a plain sarcophagus, with a 
Madonna and Child, and an Annunciation, supported by 
poor grotesque heads. Bear in mind the relative dates of 
these sarcophagi, and their gradual enrichment, as well 
as the evolution of accessories. 

Enter the Choir. 

The High Altar is an ugly rococo erection of 1619, with 
Our Lady, angels, and saints, only interesting because the 
extreme figures to L. and R. below, in Roman military 
costume, represent the two sainted martyrs, John and Paul 
(see Introduction), to whom the church is dedicated. These 
are the only figures of the nominal patrons which I have 
been able to discover in the building. The Dominicans do 
not seem to have thought much of them. 

The tombs in the Choir form an interesting example of 
the development of Venetian monuments. 

Wall on the R., first tomb, fine florid Gothic ** monu- 
ment of Doge Michele Morosini (d. 1382), the most ornate 
of all the monuments in the pointed style, and one which 
well marks the increasing sumptuousness of Venetian life, 
especially when compared with that of Doge Giacomo Tie- 
polo, outside the church, and Doge Marco Corner, opposite. 
Below, the Doge himself lies dead, with his head on a pillow, 
his serene, resolute, Dante-like features exquisitely sculp- 



136 THE CHURCHES [v. 

tured, and his face turned neither to the left nor to the right. 
The seven pedestals below once supported the Seven Virtues 
(their earliest appearance on a true Venetian tomb). At the 
side, angels. Behind is a charming * mosaic with the Cruci- 
fixion, St. John and Our Lady as usual. The Archangel 
Michael (the Doge's personal patron saint) and the Virgin 
recommend the kneeling figure of the prince, in ducal cap 
and robe, to the mercy of the crucified Saviour. On the 
extreme R., St. John the Baptist similarly recommends 
the kneeling Dogaressa. Above is a relief of Christ, and on 
the finial at the apex the Doge's patron saint, St. Michael, 
once more, with the conquered dragon. At the sides are 
niched statues of saints, surmounted by an Annunciation. 
Study the whole as a characteristic specimen of the ornate 
late Gothic tombs, which strike the keynote for later monu- 
ments. 

It is also, perhaps, the most picturesque monument in 
Venice. 

On the opposite wall is the pure Gothic tomb of Doge 
Marco Corner (d. 1368), with two angels, Madonna and 
Child, and two saints (Mark and Peter), under beautiful 
Gothic niches, probably by the Massegne. (The connecting 
portion between these saints and the recumbent figure has 
probably been destroyed.) Corner lies with his face turned 
to the spectator, a simple and effective figure. The saints 
under the niches have been affected by the same influences 
as the works of the fourteenth-century Pisan sculptors. 

The severe simplicity of this earlier work contrasts with 
the florid character of Morosini's tomb opposite, and still 
more with that of Andrea Vendramin. The growing boasl- 
fulness of the Renaissance can well be traced in this church 
and its monuments. 

L. wall, near the altar, *tomb of Doge Andrea Vendra- 
min (d. 1478), by Alessandro Leopardi. This is a beautiful 
and costly piece of early Renaissance architecture, with ex- 
quisite and delicately chiselled sculpture. 

It follows the fifteenth-century Tuscan tradition, and is 
probably the most refined example of this style in Venice. 



v.] THE CHURCHES 137 

In the centre lies the Doge, recumbent on a couch supported 
by eagles ; the face, however, has only one side sculptured, 
that turned towards the spectator. Behind are three figures 
of pages or attendants ; beneath, in niches, the Virtues, 
dressed now like heathen goddesses, and hardly distinguish- 
able from one another ; R. and L. two youthful military 
figures, splendid soulless specimens of Renaissance work- 
manship. Are they St. George and St. Theodore, or only 
pages? I think the latter. Above them, an Annunciation in 
two compartments. In the lunette under the arch between 
these, St. Mark recommends the kneeling Doge to Our 
Lady. The outermost figures of St. Catharine and the 
Magdalen, below, do not belong to the original composition 
— they are later and inferior works, substituted for Adam 
and Eve (by Tullio Lombardo) of great beauty, which were 
removed as unsuitable for a church ; they are now in the 
Palazzo Vendramin-Calergi. All the details of this beautiful 
tomb, somewhat unjustly depreciated by Ruskin, should be 
carefully examined. It shows still better the increase of the 
pomp of state in the Republic. Note especially the pre- 
dominance of symbols marking a sense of the naval supre- 
macy of Venice. This tomb should be compared with the 
monument opposite, the late Renaissance tomb of Doge 
Leonardo Loredan (d. 1521 ; but this monument was not 
erected by his family till 1572). The statue of the Doge is 
by Campagna ; the allegorical figures are uninteresting. 

These two tombs show the nature of the changes which 
went on from the end of the fifteenth and throughout the 
sixteenth centuries. It is impossible to miss the decline in 
delicacy and refinement of design, and the increased love of 
grandiose display. It is the change from the sincere and 
keenly vitalised art of the early Renaissance to a pompous 
style well suited to the solemnity and dullness produced 
under the influence of the Spanish Court. 

Beyond the apse : First Chapel (of the Trinity); L.wall r 
monument of Andrea Morosini (1347); again a sarcophagus 
with Madonna and Annunciation. 

Second Chapel : R. wall, knightly tomb of Giacopo 



138 THE CHURCHES [v. 

Cavalli — full armour, face hardly seen through helmet : dog 
and lion. He was general of Venetian troops in the war 
against Genoa, known as the war of Chioggia (d. 1394). 
The work is said in an inscription in Venetian dialect to be 
by Paolo di Jacobello (one of the Massegne); it has the 
symbols of the Evangelists and two saints (the two Jameses?), 
with brackets which once supported Faith, Hope, Charity. 
This is a noble tomb, still retaining much of its fine colour. 
L. watt, monument of Doge Giovanni Dolfin (1361), no 
inscription, but known by the arms, three dolphins ; a fine 
sculptured sarcophagus ; centre, Christ, with angels opening 
curtains (note these), and diminutive figures of the Doge 
and Dogaressa; at the ends, saints (?) male and female 
(perhaps patrons of the Doge and Dogaressa); in the 
panels, L., Arrival and Adoration of the Magi; R., Death of 
the Virgin, all of which are worthy of close attention. 

L. Transept. 

To the R. of the door into the chapel, a modern statue in 
bronze, of Sebastiano Venier. 

The door in this Transept gives access to the Chapel of 
the Rosary. This was once the richly adorned chapel of 
the great Dominican cult — the Rosary. It now contains 
nothing but the charred and blackened remains of some 
very base bas-reliefs of the rococo period, much admired 
for their intricate and useless carving. The chapel was 
accidentally burnt down on August 16th, 1867 ; unfortunately, 
it contained at the moment two of the finest pictures in the 
church, a Madonna by Bellini, and Titian's famous Death 
of St. Peter Martyr, which had been placed in it temporarily. 

The following pictures have been placed in this chapel 
during the restoration of the church. 

The Apotheosis of S. Antonino of Florence, by Lorenzo 
Lotto. 

Christ, with St. Andrew and St. Peter, by Marconi. 

The Coronation of the Virgin, with many saints, by Cima 
da Co7iegliano. 

The bas-reliefs round the walls are by Alessandro Vittoria, 
Bonassa, Tagliapietra, Torriti, and others. 



v.] THE CHURCHES 139 

Over the door which leads to this chapel is the tomb of 
Doge Antonio Venier, 1400, with numerous figures of saints, 
in beautiful niches, in the style of the Massegne. L. of the 
door, tomb of the same Doge's wife Agnese, and of their 
daughter Orsola (141 1); a fine piece of architectural work, 
with an Annunciation, and a relief of Our Lady and Child 
between St. Paul and St. John the Evangelist. 

L. wall of Transept, poor tomb of Leonardo Prato, 
knight of Rhodes, with an equestrian figure (151 1). 
Equestrian figures are common here, all suggested by 
the inimitable Colleoni; feeble imitations. 

The L. Aisle has in its first bay nothing of interest. 
Beyond the first door, stone tomb of Doge Pasquale 
Malapiero, of fine Florentine earlier Renaissance workman- 
ship ; the Doge lies on a sarcophagus supported by griffons, 
under curtains ridiculously suggestive of a shower-bath; 
there are no angels ; above are a Pieta and figures of 
Virtues. 

Next to it, tomb of Giovanni Battista Bonzio, a senator 
(d. 1508), in the usual Renaissance style, with a figure of 
the deceased, and the now inevitable Virtues. Beneath this 
tomb is an arcade, with statues of two great Dominican 
saints, St. Thomas Aquinas and St. Peter Martyr. The 
arcade contains in the arch to the R. the beautiful tomb of 
Doge Michele Steno (141 3), placed low enough to admit of 
examination; this is only a portion of the original work, 
transferred here from the demolished church of the Servites : 
the pleasing Latin inscription is worth reading. The arch 
to the L. has the Renaissance tomb of Alvise Trevisan, 1528, 
an only son whom his mourning parents have thus com- 
memorated. 

The next monument is the gilt equestrian statue of 
Pompeo Giustiniani, 1616. Beneath it is the unobtrusive 
tombstone, containing the epitaph alone, of Doge Giovanni 
Dandolo (1289). Then comes the admirable transitio?ial 
monument of Doge Tomaso Mocenigo (1423), under a 
Gothic tabernacle, with the usual recumbent effigy (fine) of 
the Doge lying dead on a sarcophagus, containing Virtues 



i 4 o THE CHURCHES [v. 

in Renaissance niches, together with two armed figures of 
mock-antique type at the angles. Here angels withdraw the 
curtains, the evolution of these angels from the Pisan 
original, and their final disappearance (as in the Valier 
atrocity) being well studied in this church and at the Frari ; 
above are saints in niches. Observe the intermixture of 
Gothic and classical forms and mouldings in the tomb before 
which you are now standing ; it is by the Florentine sculp- 
tors Piero di Niccolo and Giovanni di Martino, who were 
among the first introducers of Renaissance art in Venice. 

R. of the next altar, monument of Doge Nicolo Marcello, 
1474, by Alessandro Leopardi, brought here from the de- 
molished Servite church of Santa Marina. This is another 
good specimen of the early Renaissance tomb, with four 
figures of Virtues in the niches, and a relief of the kneeling 
Doge before Our Lady in the lunette, accompanied by 
patron saints of Venice. The altar close to this has an 
early copy of Titian's Death of St. Peter Martyr, by Cigoli, 
presented by King Victor Emmanuel in place of the 
original, destroyed in the fire. St. Peter Martyr was of 
course one of the chief lights of the Dominican order. L. of 
the altar, a boastful and ugly gilt equestrian statue forms 
the monument of Orazio Baglioni (16 17), represented as 
riding over fallen enemies. The modern marble tomb, L. 
of this statue, tasteless enough in itself, commemorates the 
two brothers Bandiera, Italian patriots done to death by 
Austria in 1844. Over the next altar, statue of St. Jerome 
by Alessandro Vittoria. 

The end wall of the nave is occupied, in its first arck, 
by the tomb of Doge Giovanni Mocenigo (1485), a work of 
Tullio and Antonio Lombardi. This is a characteristic 
middle-Renaissance monument, showing progressive de- 
terioration in taste, though still splendid in workmanship 
and pure in decoration ; it is of a type with which the reader 
will now be familiar, having on a sarcophagus the recum- 
bent figure of the Doge, who is presented, in the lunette, to 
the Madonna and Child by his patron saints ; at the sides 
are Virtues, personally indistinguishable, and at the base, 



V.] THE CHURCHES 141 

two reliefs of the Baptism of Christ and of St. Mark baptis- 
ing at Alexandria, this last in compliment to St. John the 
Baptist, the Doge's patron. Observe in the former how the 
three angels on the bank, once adult in form, have now 
shrunk into meaningless little children. 

The entire space between this Mocenigo tomb and the 
far finer opposite one of Doge Pietro Mocenigo is occupied 
by a third colossal work, dedicated to the same family and 
representing the tombs of Doge Luigi Mocenigo (1576) 
and his Dogaressa, as well as that of Doge Giovanni Bembo, 
with their recumbent figures and statues of Christ, etc. 
The reliefs represent their tenure of office (the Doge at 
prayer, the Doge sitting in council). The whole expanse of 
this great West Wall is thus given over entirely to the 
glorification of the powerful and wealthy Mocenigo family. 

For convenience of identification on a first visit, I have 
treated all the tombs in this church in local order only, but 
the visitor who has time for careful study will find it useful 
to compare them in their chronological sequence, and 

■ thus to gain a just idea of the rise, development, culmina- 
tion, decline, and final degradation of the sculptor's art in 
Venice. Fine criticisms of the most important tombs, and 

• a good sketch of their development, are given by Ruskin. 
The great Dominican monastery behind the church is 

*iow secularised. 



SAN FRANCESCO DELLA VIGNA. 

San Francesco della Vigna, a large rambling church 
in the north-eastern quarter, hard of access, and best 
approached by gondola direct. It is Franciscan, of course, 
and is said to occupy the precise spot where St. Mark 
landed on his way from Aquileia, and had his famous dream 
that his body should finally rest in these islands. Its great 
gem (to my mind) is its lovely **Madonna by Fra Antonio 
da Negroponte, a little-known Paduan artist, about 1450— 
perhaps the most strangely neglected among the wonderful 
pictures of Venice. In calm dignity and graceful charm of 



142 THE CHURCHES [v. 

colour this glorious Madonna has few equals ; yet nobody 
visits it. It stands on the R. wall of the right transept. 
The left transept gives access to the Cappella Santa, whose 
altar-piece is a *Madonna with Saints Sebastian, Jerome, 
John Baptist, and Francis, by Giovanni Bellini, much 
retouched ; this is a good work, but not to be named in the 
same day with the delicious Negroponte. I may add that 
Francis, Jerome, and John the Baptist are important saints 
in this church ; Franciscan doges and persons named 
Francesco are much commemorated in it. The Cappella 
Giustiniani, left of the choir, has a good sculptured altar- 
piece by the Lombardi, with St. Jerome and other appro- 
priate saints, and scenes in relief from the life of St. Jerome, 
comprehensible after you have seen San Giorgio degli 
Schiavoni. The second altar in the left aisle is a plague-altar, 
with statues by Vittoria of St. Roch, St. Sebastian, and St. 
Antony Abbot. Altogether, for those who have time to 
examine it, this is one of the most interesting minor 
churches in Venice. With the hints here given, you will 
understand most of it. 



Group E. 

S. ZACCARIA. S. GIORGIO DEGLI SCHIAVONI. 

S. GIORGIO DEI GRECI. S. GIOVANNI IN 

BRAGORA. CHURCH OF THE PIETA. 

SAN ZACCARIA. 

[The church of San Zaccaria well deserves a visit. It is 
reached from the Piazza by going as straight as you can go 
past the Patriarchal Palace, and over two bridges, till you 
reach a doorway with an inscription " Campo San Zaccaria." 
In the tympanum of this doorway is a fine relief, in the style 
of he Massegne, representing, on the finial, St. Zacharias (?) 
blessing ; beneath, Our Lady and the Child, St. John the 
Baptist, son of St. Zacharias, and St. Mark the Evangelist. 
This was the ancient gate of a large and important Bene= 



v.] THE CHURCHES 143 

dictine nunnery, to which the church belonged. The 
nunnery was established here from a very early date, and 
daughters of the noblest Venetian houses were enrolled 
among its numbers as abbesses and sisters. They had the 
privilege of presenting the Doge with his ducal cap ; almost 
all the Doges from 837 to 1172 were buried in their church.] 

The existing building was mainly erected by Martino 
Lombardi in 1457, but contains fragments of older work. 
Its facade is a good specimen of early Renaissance architec- 
ture, which should be compared with the closely similar 
example in the Scuola di San Marco. Notice the circular 
form given to the false gable, and to the blind portion or 
screen which joins nave and aisles. Over the entrance, out- 
side, is a statue of the patron saint, St. Zacharias (the priest, 
and father of St. John the Baptist), by Alessandro Vittoria. 
The campanile is Romanesque, thirteenth century. 

Enter the church. It has a striking interior. Over the 
holy water vessel to the R. of the entrance is a statuette of 
St. John the Baptist, by Alessandro Vittoria. 

The nave and aisles contain a large number of tolerable 
pictures, which space will not permit me to notice in full. 
The second altar in the L. aisle has a magnificent "^altar- 
piece by Giovanni Bellini in his later period (1505), repre- 
senting Our Lady and the Child, enthroned under a niche of 
a sort with which we are now familiar. To the R. stands 
St. Lucy, with long fair hair, holding a lamp and the palm of 
her martyrdom — a lovely figure in Bellini's most charming 
later manner. Beyond her is St. Jerome, as the father of the 
monastic life, reading in the Vulgate— a fine, virile, aged 
form, in a splendid red robe. To the L. are St. Catharine of 
Alexandria and St. Peter. As this is a nuns' church, promi- 
nence is rightly given to the graceful and tender female 
saints. This picture shows Bellini in a transitional stage to 
the later Renaissance manner ; it is, as Vasari justly called 
it, a modern picture. 

The altar just opposite this, in the R. az's/e, has a gilt 
sarcophagus, interesting as containing the body of the 
patron, St. Zacharias, father of St. John the Baptist, as its 



144 THE CHURCHES [v. 

inscription relates. You will never thoroughly understand 
early churches unless you note the importance of such relics. 

The door on the R. beyond this gives access to the Nuns' 
Choir, separated here, as often elsewhere, from the main 
building, so that the nuns might sing unseen, as they still do 
at Santa Trinita dei Monti at Rome. It is fitted up with 
good inlaid choir-stalls for the nuns, dating from 1460. On 
the R. wall in this choir is a Madonna, usually attributed to 
Palma Vecchio, but perhaps by Lorenzo Lotto ; it represents 
Our Lady and the Child enthroned, with a musical angel ; 
on the L. are St. Bernard, St. Gregory the Pope, and St. 
Paul ; on the R. are St. Elizabeth of Hungary, holding her 
crown, as typical of those in high position who renounce the 
world for the monastic profession ; and, near her, St. Bene- 
dict, as founder of the order ; the young saint behind I can- 
not identify. Is he St. Tarasius ? 

Over the door is a tolerable and locally appropriate Tin- 
toretto of the Birth of St. John the Baptist, with St. Zacharias 
and St. Elizabeth ; this is a good piece of light and colour. 
The pictures to the R. and L.are by L. Bassano, the Funeral 
of the Virgin and the Assumption of the Virgin. I do not 
think they were painted for their present situation. The 
altar-piece is a touching Mater Dolorosa, attributed to Titian, 
a replica of the one painted for the Emperor Charles V. 

The Nave and Aisle belong to the Renaissance building ; 
the Apse is a relic of the older Gothic church, quaintly pre- 
served amid the newer architecture. 

The door in the ambulatory behind the Choir gives en- 
trance to the Cappella di San Tarasio. (Ticket of admis- 
sion to the Chapel and to the Sacristy, 50 centimes.) 

The chapel is a good Gothic building, with a fine vaulted 
apse. 

The *ancona, or tabernacle, which occupies the place of a 
High Altar, stands over the sarcophagus containing the body 
of St. Tarasius. It was the gift of Helena Foscari, and was 
intended to contain a relic of the Holy Cross. The old florid 
frame is intact, with its numerous figures of saints, of whom 
the one to the L. above, nearest to Our Lady, is the patron 



v.] THE CHURCHES 145 

St. Zacharias — compare with the much later wooden figure 
on the bracket close by ; the one to the R. below, crowned 
and holding the True Cross, is the Empress Helena, at once 
the discoverer of the relic and the name-saint of the donor ; 
the other figures are mainly virgin martyrs, Agnes, Catharine, 
etc., as is usual in nunneries. The pictures were originally 
by Giovanni (da Allemagna) and Antonio Vivarini. St. 
Mark in the L. corner, and St. Blaise on the R., are like 
other works of these masters ; the Madonna and the two 
other figures, St. Martin and St. Elizabeth, wife of St. 
Zacharias, have been so repainted as to be practically 
modern. The older figures show the Cologne influence. 

In the Sacristy are two other magnificent early altar- 
pieces in their original gilt tabernacle frames, dating from 
1444, due to the munificence of noble and wealthy ladies j 
whose names they bear and who were inmates of this 
convent. 

The *altar-piece on the R. stood over the sarcophagus 
containing the remains of Saints Nereus and Achilleus and 
St. Pancras. It was the gift of Agnesina Giustiniani, as its 
inscription, dated 1443, narrates. Its wood- work represents, 
below, a Pieta to contain a relic ; above, the fainting figure 
of Our Lady ; higher still, the Resurrection. The paintings 
are again by Giovanni da Murano (da Allemagna) and 
Antonio Vivarini ; though much repainted, they still show 
the influence of the Cologne school. To the L. are St. 
Gregory the Pope and another saint (I think, St. Pancras) ; 
to the R. St. Nereus and St. Achilleus, whose bodies rested 
below in the sarcophagus. 

The **altar-piece on the L. was the gift of Margherita 
Donato, and is signed by Giovanni and Antonio da Murano 
(Vivarini). It represents, above, St. Margaret, the name- 
sake of the donor, and another female saint whom I fail to 
recognise ; below, in the centre, St. Sabina (whose body lies 
in the sarcophagus beneath, as the inscription testifies), with 
a face recalling the school of Cologne ; L., St. Jerome, 
with the church, book, and lion ; R., St. Icerius, with the 
instrument of his martyrdom. The garden at the back of 



I 4 6 THE CHURCHES [v. 

these three last figures is full of the spirit of the Cologne 
school. The ancient part of all three altar-pieces ought to 
be carefully studied by any one who wishes to understand 
the half-German origin of Venetian painting. 

All the saints in this chapel are not Oriental, as elsewhere 
at Venice, but Roman, from the Ccelian hill— a noteworthy 
peculiarity. 

Walk round the ambidatory. Near the end is the tomb 
of Alessandro Vittoria, with a bust of himself, by himself. 

The adjacent nunnery is now used as barracks. 



SAN GIORGIO DEGLI SCHIAVONI. 

[The Dalmatians and Ulyrians were amongst the 
earliest subjects of the Venetian Republic ; the trade with 
the opposite coast was always considerable, much of Venice 
being built of Istrian stone and Dalmatian timber. Indeed, 
the chief quay itself derived from the name of this Slavonic 
people the title (which it still bears) of Riva degli Schiavoni. 
In 1452, the Council of Ten permitted certain leading 
Dalmatian merchants settled at Venice to establish a lay 
brotherhood, called, after the two great patron saints of 
Dalmatia, the Fraternity of St. George and St. Tryphonius. 
It was founded for the relief of old and poor Dalmatians, 
especially sailors, for the burial of the dead, and for the 
education of the needy children of their race ; and these 
objects are still its care at the present day, for it continues 
to exist in modern Venice. The Brotherhood built itself 
a little oratory or chapel near the Priory of St. John of 
Jerusalem, on the Rio della Pieta ; and at the close of the 
fifteenth century the members rebuilt this hall in the present 
form, the work being completed, and the marble fagade 
finished, in the year 1501. During the next ten years, 
Carpaccio was employed to decorate its walls with a series 
of paintings illustrating the lives of the two patron saints, 
George and Tryphonius, and also that of St. Jerome, the 
translator of the Scriptures from Hebrew and Greek into 
Latin (in the version known as the Vulgate), who, though 



V.] THE CHURCHES 147 

not a patron of the Guild, was a Dalmatian, and therefore a 
countryman of its members. This chapel or meeting-hall 
of the Brotherhood is commonly known as San Giorgio 
degli Scniavom, and is best reached by gondola. (If on 
foot, go towards San Zaccaria ; then San Giorgio dei Greci 
and Sant' Antonino ; whence a Fondamenta leads direct to 
the door.) It should be visited for the sake of these 
exquisite works of Carpaccio's, which are both beautiful 
in themselves, and also show one a series like the St. 
Ursulas of the Academy, still existing in the very building 
and in the very framework for which they were originally 
intended.] 

The simple middle Renaissance facade (by Sansovino) 
dates from 1 55 1, but has embedded in its front a quaint late 
fifteenth or early sixteenth-century relief of St. George, 
mounted, piercing the dragon's head. The dragon has one 
paw on the bust of a previous victim. Behind is a charming 
figure of the little Princess, fleeing ; in the background, the 
towers and ramparts of a mediaeval city. Above this, 
St. John the Baptist presents the donor to Our Lady and 
the Child ; as he lays his hand on the votary's head, the 
latter's name was probably Giambattista. To the R., St. 
Catharine of Alexandria, crowned, with her wheel and her 
palm of martyrdom : probably patroness of the donor's 
wife. 

The interior consists of a pretty little panelled oratory, 
with good wooden roof. Above the panels are the famous 
^paintings by Carpaccio, which have made it a shrine for 
many worshippers not Slavs. 

Begin on the L. wall. First picture : St. George conquer- 
ing the Dragon. The youthful saint, with fair hair flying in 
the wind, and in admirably painted armour, sits on a brown 
horse of somewhat clumsy build, as was usual with 
mediaeval horses. He tilts with his lance at the dragon, a 
very terrible and typical monster. The ground hard by is 
covered with the bleached bones of previous victims. To 
the R., the little princess, crowned and in a red robe, 
stands with clasped hands, confident of her champion's 



i 4 8 THE CHURCHES [v. 

speedy victory. In the background, a seascape with ships, 
strongly recalling the story of Perseus and Andromeda, from 
which this is an obvious derivative. To the L. is architec- 
ture, intended, after Carpaccio's wont, to represent the 
rudeness of a pagan city. 

Second picture : **St. George leads the conquered and 
crestfallen dragon — a passing tame beast indeed — into the 
pagan city. The centre is occupied by the saint and his 
bridled victim. To the L. are charming figures of the pagan 
(or Saracen), king, on a white charger, and the princess, 
also mounted, beside him. Behind these, to the L., Oriental 
figures (probably derived from studies made by Gentile 
Bellini at Constantinople), all excellently drawn and 
coloured. The background is formed by the buildings of 
the city, crowded with spectators. On the R., more orien- 
tals, representing, I think, a second scene, where the king 
and princess have dismounted from their chargers (notice 
the exact similarity of the trappings on the two riderless 
horses to those in the other portion of the picture). Within, 
the saint is probably preparing his new and sudden con- 
verts for baptism. 

The small panel beyond these (with the risen Christ and 
an adoring donor) is not by Carpaccio, and is unimportant. 

Altar wall : *the Baptism of the king and princess. 
The saint stands on the steps of the palace, pouring water 
over the bare head of the converted king. Behind him, a 
delicious attendant bears a lovely vase with water for the 
ceremony. Beyond the king, the princess, with her long 
golden hair, kneels to await the Sacrament : her tiring- 
woman is Moorish, and wears a pretty Oriental shawl. 
The king's turban is tidily laid on the steps. To the L., 
in order to show that this is a great state ceremony, 
musicians blow trumpets and bang drums, while Saracens 
in turbans look on at the triumph of the new religion. 
Dignified courtiers kneel beside them. All the accessories, 
such as the parrot, the dog, the architecture, etc., deserve 
close observation. Note how the careful saint withdraws 
his rich red robe to save it from wetting ; he is still in 



v.] THE CHURCHES 149 

armour beneath it, because that is part of his symbolical 
character. Do not pass too quickly over these lovely and 
pregnant pictures. 

The altar-piece is a pretty, but insipid, Madonna and 
Child, by Vincenzo Catena, substituted for one by Carpaccio. 

Beyond the altar, end wall, a single scene from the life 
of St. Tryphonius, the other patron saint of the fraternity. 
It represents the one great episode in his legend : St. 
Tryphonius, as a child, subdues a basilisk, which had 
ravaged Albania. The child's head and figure are pretty 
and schoolboyish ; the basilisk is not well imagined. To 
the R. sits the Governor, with features like those of 
Louis XL, surrounded by courtiers. The rest of the can- 
vas is taken up by wondering spectators, and Carpaccio's 
usual architecture. Note the beautiful rugs through the 
windows, and observe that the miracle is treated again as 
a state ceremony. 

On the R. wall are two pictures unconnected in subject 
with the series. The first, the Agony in the Garden (by 
Carpaccio, but ruined), has the three sleeping saints in the 
usual attitudes, and above, the praying Saviour. 

The subject of the *second picture is much debated ; 
Ruskin describes it as the Calling of Matthew ; others 
regard it as Christ invited to the house of the Pharisee. I 
am myself inclined to consider it as the Rich Young Man 
to whom Christ gives the command, "Sell all that thou 
hast and follow Me." The Saviour, surrounded by the 
apostles, grasps the hand of a bearded man in a crimson 
cap and exquisite brocaded robe, who stands at the door of 
a counting-house. This is a fine picture, but one which 
requires little description. 

The other three panels represent the history of St. 
Jerome, a compatriot of the members of the fraternity, 
and translator of the Bible into Latin. In spite of the 
critics, I cannot bring myself to believe that the first two 
canvases of this series are by Carpaccio ; both in treatment 
and in technique they seem to me wholly alien to his 
manner. 



150 THE CHURCHES [v 

In the first picture St. Jerome introduces his tame, 
obedient, and smiling lion to the monks of his monastery. 
The saint himself is bland and persuasive ; the monks, un- 
used to such monsters, fly in terror ; their running, though 
full of movement, is awkwardly represented. The back- 
ground rather suggests the neighbourhood of Florence than 
Venetian architecture. 

The second picture represents the Burial of St. Jerome. 
The wasted body of the aged ascetic is laid on a terrace in 
the foreground ; he died at Bethlehem, and an attempt is 
given to impress this fact by the introduction of palm trees 
and of a strange animal tied to the one in the middle dis- 
tance. A priest reads the burial service ; the monks, in blue 
and white robes, kneel around him. 

The third picture, clearly by Carpaccio himself, represents 
*the saint in his study translating the Scriptures. It should 
have occupied the previous panel. The contention of Mr. 
Ruskin and his collaborator that this picture represents St. 
Jerome in heaven seems to me quite untenable ; the subject 
is one commonly represented, and the treatment here con- 
tains many elements wholly inconsistent with this strange 
hypothesis. The saint is seated to the R., in a charming- 
study, with his authorities open on the table and on the 
ground around him ; he is pausing for the exact Latin 
equivalent to some difficult Hebrew phrase. A mathe- 
matical instrument on the R. suggests his deep astronomical 
learning. The centre background is occupied by a dainty 
little niche, with a figure of the risen Christ bearing the 
Resurrection banner. On the table is placed St. Jerome's 
abbot's mitre, and close by stands his crozier. To the L. 
of this, a door gives a glimpse into a second charming 
chamber. To the extreme L. we see delicious furniture — a 
charming chair, a reading desk, and rolls of manuscripts laid 
on a shelf, above which is a brass sconce, and below, a shell 
containing antique bric-a-brac, very inappropriate in heaven, 
but showing that Carpaccio envisaged the saint as a learned 
ecclesiastic with the tastes of a cardinal of his own period. 
The antique curios include a bronze horse, a little bronze, 



v.] THE CHURCHES 151 

statuette, and three or* four small black-and-yellow Greek 
vases, of the type erroneously called Etruscan, and found in 
tombs of the early Etruscan period. All the furniture of 
this delightful chamber may be closely noted ; its ceiling 
somewhat resembles that of this very oratory. 



S. GIORGIO DEI GRECI. 

This church, which may be reached in a few minutes from 
S. Giorgio degli Schiavoni, is arranged for the needs of the 
Greek ritual. An Iconostasis separates the eastern end of 
the church from the rest of the building. Behind the 
Iconostasis, the centre, corresponding generally to the Apse 
of a Latin church, forms the Holy of Holies ; to the left is 
the Prothesis, to the right the Diakanon. 

In the semi-dome, over the Holy Place, there is a mosaic 
of Christ. 

On the upper part of the Iconostasis there are pictures of 
the Nativity and Baptism ; the series is continued on the 
side walls of the church. On the left, the Descent into 
Hades, on the right wall the Transfiguration. Below these 
large pictures there is a series of small scenes. 

Over the door of the Diakanon there is a figure of Michael 
and pictures of the Presentation and the Stoning of Stephen. 
Over the entrance to the Holy Place, the Descent of the 
Spirit, the Ascension and Last Supper, the Descent into 
Hades, and the Triumphal Entry. 

Over the door of the Prothesis, the Transfiguration, the 
Nativity, and the Annunciation. To the right and left of 
the entry into the Holy Place there are pictures of Christ 
and Madonna covered with silver. 

In front of the Iconostasis there are four elaborate candle 
standards by Alessandro Vittoria. 

The use of pictures in this church is interesting as an 
illustration of the practice of the Greek faith. 



152 THE CHURCHES [v. 



S. GIOVANNI IN BRAGORA. 

May be reached by a well-frequented line of streets in a 
few minutes from the Piazza San Marco ; or directly from 
the Schiavoni. 

At the back of the High Altar is the Baptism of Christ, 
by Cima da Conegliano, a picture spacious in effect and with 
fine feeling. Three Venetian maidens hold the garments to 
the left. Christ stands in a river which flows down a peace- 
ful Italian valley from a range of mountains in the back- 
ground, to the left is a characteristic Italian hill city. 

On the pier to the left of the entrance to the Choir, Alvise 
Vivarini has painted the Risen Christ. On the pier to the 
right, the Emperor Constantine and the Empress Helena 
stand with the Cross between them, painted by Cima da 
Co7iegliano. 

In the right aisle, near the Western door, is a picture by 
Alvise Vivarini, of St. Andrew with St. Jerome and St. 
Martin : not a well-inspired work of the master. 

In the right aisle, near the Choir, under a crucifix, is a 
relief of Madonna and Child ; the only charm is the sim- 
plicity of feeling in this rather dull and heavy work, which 
has been spoilt by paint and gilding. 

In the left aisle, near the door, is a Baptismal Font of red 
Verona marble in the form of a capital carved with foliage. 
A picture by Bartolommeo Vivarini of Madonna and Child 
with SS. John and Andrew is painted on a gold background, 
the colour is harsh. 

Beyond this is a picture of The Last Supper, by Paris 
Bordone. 

The church of the Pieta on the Riva degli Schiavoni is 
chiefly visited for its very fine Moretto, behind the High Altar, 
^Christ in the House of Simon the Pharisee. This noble 
and graceful picture shows us Moretto as one of the origin- 
ators of that palatial, lordly, splendid, non-religious mode of 
treating these festal subjects, which was afterwards carried 
to so unpleasant an extreme by Paolo Veronese. Like most 



v.] THE CHURCHES 153 

of its class it was originally the decoration of a refectory — 
that of the convent of San Fermo at Monselice. 



Group P. 

S. GIOVANNI ELEMOSINARIO. S. CASSIANO. 
S. MARIA MATER DOMINI. 

S. GIOVANNI ELEMOSINARIO. 

Leave the steamer at the Riva del Carbon, close to the 
Rialto ; cross the bridge and turn to the left. 

The church is dedicated in the name of St. John the 
Almsgiver, San Giovanni Elemosinario — an Alexandrian 
saint, who was adopted by Venice in the days of her close 
intercourse with Egyptian Christendom. Its High Altar has 
a famous picture by Titian, representing the patron, San 
Giovanni, Patriarch of Alexandria, distributing alms, which 
a beggar is receiving. It is a fine piece of colouring, 
with Titian's characteristic mannerism of attitude. The 
Patriarch is an old man with a white beard, kindly and 
venerable. But something in the disposition of the figure 
and of the bishop's robes gives a suggestion of common- 
place to an otherwise fine picture. 

The chapel to the R. of the High Altar has also a good 
Pordenone, a plague-picture, St. Roch as chief plague- 
patron, between St. Sebastian and St. Catharine of 
Alexandria. 

On the wall of the chapel, to the right, is a curious relief of 
the Nativity. 

S. CASSIANO. 

A question to any passer-by will enable the visitor to reach 
San Cassiano in three or four minutes. 

First altar to the right, a picture of St. John the Baptist 
and four other saints ascribed to Palma Vecchio. St. Paul 
is to the right, the three other saints carry large volumes. 



i 5 4 THE CHURCHES [v. 

On the left wall of the Choir is the Crucifixion, by Tintoretto. 
Here, as in other Venetian pictures of this subject, a man 
climbs a ladder to fix the writing above the head of Christ. 



S. MARIA MATER DOMINI. 

This church is quite near to S. Cassiano. It stands close 
to a small Campo, to which it gives its name. 

Note the remains of many fine architectural details and 
a number of small Byzantine panels. 

Within the church, over the second altar to the right, 
Catena has painted the martyrdom of Santa Cristina. She 
kneels close to a lake,, round her neck is a rope, and two of 
the small angels who wait on her carry the stone to which it 
is fastened. Santa Cristina is of the simple type such as we 
see in Carpaccio's Presentation, at the Academy, and in 
Bellini's altar-piece at S. Zaccaria. 

In the northern transept is a picture of the proving of the 
true Cross by Tinto?-etto. Groups of magnificent figures 
stand to the right and left, among them a man in a turban, 
probably intended to stand for one of the Jews who helped 
to find the relic. In the centre the Cross has been laid on 
the sick person, and the Empress, wearing her crown and 
gorgeously attired, watches with a mixture of pain and 
astonishment while the nails are handed from one attendant 
to another. The colour is rich, and there is a fine sense of 
expansive and large existence. In the opposite transept, 
Last Supper, by Bo?iifazio. Beneath it there is a charming 
relief in the Byzantine manner — Madonna spreads her hands 
in prayer. Note the peculiarly delicate and beautiful detail 
of the setting. To the left of the western door there is a 
bust of Madonna and Child. 

From the church of S.M. Mater Domini it is easy to 
reach the Museo Civico on foot, or to return to the Rialto 
Bridge. 



v.] THE CHURCHES 155 



Group O. 

MADONNA DELL' ORTO. Sta. CATERINA. 
S. MARIA DEI GESUITI. S. MARCILIANO. 

MADONNA DELL' ORTO. 

May be reached in a few minutes from the steamboat 
station at San Geremia. This Church has a Gothic facade 
in the florid style. On the pinnacle over the Western door 
St. Christopher stands with the Child on his shoulder (the 
church is dedicated in the name of S. Christopher Martyr). 
On the joints of the door, the figures of Mary and Gabriel 
form an Annunciation. Under the eaves are the twelve 
Apostles in niches. 

In the Interior, over the first altar to the right, there is a 
fine picture by Cima da Conegliano. St. John the Baptist 
with two Apostles and two prophets are grouped under a 
Renaissance loggia. They are placed in a graceful fashion, 
and a glow of feeling suffuses the picture. In the back- 
ground are the walls and towers of a little hill-city. On the 
wall of the Right Aisle is a large and pretentious monu- 
ment to Girolamo Cavaccio (died 1681). 

In the Left Aisle. The altar-piece of the first Chapel is 
attributed to Giovanni Bellini, and on the right wall of the 
chapel is a Pieta by Lorenzo Lotto. 

In the Third Chapel, the Presentation of the Virgin in the 
Temple, by Tintoretto. The centre of this pretentious 
picture is the charming figure of the Child. The High 
Priest, the mothers and the onlookers are painted on an 
immense scale that has at least the appearance of being out 
of proportion to the setting. 

In the Fourth Chapel. Busts of the Contarini family, 
and on the altar, the Miracle of St. Agnes by Tintoretto. 

In the Choir there are two large pictures by Tintoretto; 
one of them, the Last Judgment (on the right), is of great 
importance. 

The picture is divided into three parts, the heavens above, 



156 THE CHURCHES [v. 

earth, and hell beneath. At the highest point the nude 
figure of Christ, holding the Cross of the Resurrection, is 
seated on the clouds ; to the spectator's left, Madonna with a 
lily over her head, to the left St. John Baptist. 

Beneath the feet of Christ a woman floats upwards with 
two infants, as if presenting them. Another pair of figures 
embrace, and to the right there is a group of martyrs. 

At the sides of the picture magnificent angels blow the 
trumpet, which calls up the dead. In the circle below there 
are figures of Evangelists and probably Apostles. Here 
ends the Paradise. 

In a lower circle Michael weighs the soul, and to the right 
is a group of the blessed ready to ascend. 

Beneath this there is the rocky and marshy field of earth 
to the left, and to the right is the torrent which carries the 
welter of humanity to hell. 

In the lower left-hand corner the dead rise. One is 
helped by an angel who clasps him in his arms ; one grin- 
ning skull has the poets' olive crown, and his fingers grow 
into leaves ; a woman who has risen clothed in the garments 
of earth draws them off. 

The effect of the rank vegetation, of the dank pools, 
together with the grim skeletons are in striking contrast to 
the patient effort and dim calm which mark earlier treat- 
ment of the Judgment, such as that of Signorelli at Orvieto. 
To the right of the picture a rapid torrent rushes down 
towards hell. Into it fall the bodies of the damned, who are 
finally gathered by devils into the boat of Charon which 
glows with flames. 

Tintoretto has separated life from its conventions ; the 
elemental forces which lie below the surface of things are 
no longer hidden by habit and custom ; existence stands 
out in its bare reality ; we are oppressed by the crash of 
doom. 

On the left of the Choir, Tintoretto has painted the Wor- 
ship of the Golden Calf. 

In the upper part of the picture an ungraceful vision of 
ungainly angels present the Tables to Moses, who rests upon 




PhotogTaph : Anderson 



SINNER GOING DOWN TO HELL 

By Michael Angelo 

Detail from the Last Judgment in the Sistine Chapel 

Compare with the picture by Tintoretto at S. Madonna del Orto 



v.] THE CHURCHES 157 

the clouds. In the lower part of the picture the people make 
festival, the calf is borne in procession, precious things lie 
in heaps on the ground, and a man fills buckets with the 
Israelitish women's bracelets and chains. Some of these 
women in gorgeous dresses watch the procession. 

In the upper part of the canvas the Divine Will is 
revealed to man ; in the lower part, man celebrates mun- 
dane power and splendour. Note the figure of the young 
Venetian woman in a blue robe, remarkable for her beauty 
and for the ease and grace with which she bears herself. 



SANTA CATERINA. 

Within a few minutes' walk from Madonna dell' Orto is the 
church of Sta. Caterina. (If closed, entrance by the door of the 
Convitto Nazionale.) On the High Altar is a famous picture 
by Paolo Veronese of the Marriage of St. Catherine. Mary, 
with the Child on her knee, sits on a high throne, behind 
which rise two Corinthian columns with purple drapery and 
a palm of martyrdom. Her figure is dull and heavy, her 
expression unmoved. St. Catherine kneels on the steps, 
magnificently robed in pale yellow and blue brocade. Her 
wealth of form, her long golden hair, her crown and rich 
jewels, add all that can be added to represent a stately, 
ostentatious existence. Her face expresses the satiety 
which awaits such a life. The marriage is celebrated by 
angels who make music on the mandoline, and in the fore- 
ground two fine figures sing from a music-book. From the 
clouds a bevy of cherubs descend with a crown. 

Nothing could more exactly express the Venetian pride of 
life than the whole atmosphere of this picture. 



SANTA MARIA DEI GESUITI, 
OR, I. GESUITI. 

This church is not more than three or four minutes' walk 
from Sta. Caterina. 

Nothing that spacious design and the use of rich material 



158 THE CHURCHES [v. 

can do has been spared to make the building imposing. 
Over the first altar to the left, in the nave; is the Martyrdom 
of St. Lawrence, by Titian. In spite of the darkening of 
this picture, it enforces a deep impression of irresistible power. 
St. Lawrence lies on an iron cage, with fire below. The 
only points of high light come from a basket of burning fuel 
and from a break in the clouds, through which light from 
heaven falls on the saint. 

In the left transept is the Assumption of Mary, by Tin- 
toretto. The picture is best seen from the opposite side of 
the church. 



SAN MARCILIANO. 

This church is in the same district as Santa Caterina and 
I. Gesuiti. 

Over the first altar to the left is a picture by Titian, 
Tobias and the Angel. Compare it with the same subject 
treated by Cima da Conegliano in Sala XVII at the 
Academy. The difference is that which marks the change 
from the traditional Venetian style of the fifteenth century 
(i.e. the schools of the Vivarini and Bellini) to the new 
style of Giorgione as it was elaborated by Titian. Note the 
rapid stride of the Archangel Raphael, his eager gesture, 
the sense of power. He is more like a young Roman soldier 
than an angel. Tobias is a heavy, stupid-looking peasant 
boy, equally removed from the pretty child of Cima, in the 
Academy, and the gaily tripping youth in the picture by the 
school of Verocchio, in the Academy at Florence. 

Over the second altar to the R. Tintoretto painted the 
Assumption of S. Marciliano. The saint's mitre and staff 
are carried by small angels, and above is a vision of the 
Holy Spirit. Beneath sit St. Peter and another saint with 
books. 



v.] THE CHURCHES 159 

Group H. 

THE PALLADIAN CHURCHES. 

[Andrea Palladio, of Vicenza (1 518-1580), was the last of 
the great Renaissance architects of Venice. H\s pa/aces are 
chiefly seen in his native town ; his churches in Venice. 
He aimed at classical simplicity, and attained a chilly, 
cheerless formality. He was practically the father of the 
seventeenth and eighteenth centuries and of the " classical " 
mania. Pall Mall derives from him. His churches here 
may be well compared and contrasted with the earlier and 
more decorative buildings of the Lombardi, of which we 
have seen fine examples at the Scuola di San Marco and 
San Zaccaria. They have a certain spacious stateliness of 
their own, though they foreshadow the decadence. The 
worst fault of Palladio's churches lies in the fact that he 
tried to apply the forms of the Greek or Roman temple — 
which was a single simple flat-roofed building, all of one 
height — to the traditional requirements of the Christian 
church, which is a complex building with high nave and 
lower aisles, usually intercepted by transepts. The en- 
deavour to reconcile these conflicting types strikes the 
keynote of Palladio's church architecture.] 

(a) SAN GIORGIO MAGGIORE. 

On an island at the eastern extremity of Venice a Bene- 
dictine monastery in honour of St. George the Martyr 

existed from a very early period. In 11 10, Doge Ordelafo 
Falier brought to it the body of St. Stephen the Protomartyr 
(but he has other bodies elsewhere) : on which account 
subsequent Doges paid a yearly visit here on St. Stephen's 
day. The great church of this monastery was demolished 
in the sixteenth century, in order that Palladio might rebuild 
it (1560) in its existing form. The vast monastic buildings 
around, though still inhabited in part by a few Benedictine 
monks, are mostly given over to artillery barracks and other 



i6o THE CHURCHES [v. 

Government offices. The whole island was originally 
covered by these monastic buildings, the greatest in 
Venice. 

San Giorgio is best visited by gondola, though a steamer 
starts from the Riva every hour. 

The Church and its Campanile are familiar objects to 
every visitor. They stand out as a most picturesque mass, 
as they are seen from many points on the Riva degli 
Schiavoni, and from the entrance to the Grand Canal. 

The Exterior has little to recommend it. 

The marble-coated facade (Scamozzi, 1575) well shows 
the attempt to combine nave and aisle with the classical 
form, the problem being here solved by means of a sort of 
double pediment harshly interrupted. The chief figures 
on the facade are appropriately those of St. George, R., and 
St. Stephen, L. 

The spacious Interior is interesting. It has at least the 
merit of purity, being all in one style, as Palladio left it, 
unencumbered by later rococo additions. 

Over the door is a feeble portrait of the exiled Pope Pius 
VII., who was elected in this church by a conclave of fugi- 
tive cardinals in 1800, during the troubles which followed 
the French Revolution. 

There are five pictures by Tintoretto in this Church \ none 
of them, however, are of his best. 

Over the third altar, R. aisle, is the Martyrdom of SS. 
Cosmo and Damiano. This curious and confused compo- 
sition, a hasty painting, seems to combine the various 
elements of their long torture in one scene, together, per- 
haps, with the martyrdom of St. Sebastian. 

R. Transept. Altar of St. Benedict ; Tintoretto, Corona- 
tion of the Virgin, in the presence of St. Benedict in his 
black robes, to the L., with the book of his rule and his 
Abbot's crozier ; a Benedictine martyr, wounded in the 
head, and bearing the palm of his martyrdom, whom I do 
not identify ; Pope Gregory the Great, with the dove 
whispering at his ear ; and a Benedictine bishop ; below are 
a group of Benedictine fathers, donors of the picture. 



v.] THE CHURCHES i6r 

In the Presbytery is the High Altar, with the figure of the 
Eternal Father (by Campagna) wearing a triangular halo 
(for the Blessed Trinity), and supported on a globe by the 
symbolic Evangelists. On the R. wall, the *Last Supper, by 
Tintoretto, one of his gloomiest pictures, chiefly relieved by 
the fine luminous head of the Saviour, and by the group of 
angels in weird celestial light grouped around the cresset ; 
the domestic details to the R., with the fine effect of light on 
the face of the realistic serving- woman, are characteristic of 
Tintoretto's manner. The result produced by the use of 
these aureoles emitting light does not justify the departure 
from usual custom. 

Opposite on the L. wall, ^Gathering of the Manna (also by 
Tintoretto), always held to be typical of the Last Supper and 
of the Sacrifice of the Mass ; this is a fine piece of spacious 
and airy landscape, with very varied groups in Tintoretto's 
naturalistic manner. 

The monks' choir, behind the High Altar, has carved 
wooden seats, with an entire series of the usual scenes from 
the life of St. Benedict, by a fine wood-carver of the Flemish 
Renaissance school (1598)— note the dolphins, typical of the 
naval position of Venice ; also, the Twelve Apostles, bearing- 
each the instrument of his martyrdom. 

Chapel beside the L. transept : the Resurrection, by 
Tintoretto, with the family of Doge Vincenzo Morosini as 
spectators of the mystery. Black and gold colouring. Above 
the door to the L., the Doge's monument. 

L. Transept: altar of St. Stephen, who is here, of course, 
a leading saint ; the altar-piece, by Tintoretto, represents his 
martyrdom, noticeable for the fine luminosity, of the dying 
saint's head and face. Below, his remains, in a sarcophagus. 
L. aisle: first altar, of the name-saint, St. George, bad 
altar-piece of his victory over the dragon. Second altar, 
colossal rococo statue of Our Lady and the Child, and 
fly-away angels, by Campagna. Third altar, of St. Lucy, 
altar-piece (by L. Bassano) of the saint dragged to martyr- 
dom by ropes and bullocks, which are miraculously unable 
to move her ; the painter, in order to mark his sense of the 

M 



1 62 THE CHURCHES [v. 

marvel, has employed a team of half a dozen at least for the 
purpose — a weak expedient. 

At the end of the aisle, monument of Doge Marcantonio 
Memmo. 

The campanile should be ascended for the sake of its 
beautiful *view over the lagoons and islands, perhaps the 
best to be obtained in Venice. (Easy mounting; inclined 
plane ; quite clean.) One sees well from this point the 
position of the Lido and of the lagoon ; while the various 
mud-banks, channels, and islets are spread out like a map 
before you. It also affords a good bird's-eye view of the 
courtyard of the ancient monastery. 

The great Paolo Veronese of the Marriage at Cana, now 
ill the Louvre, came from the Refectory of this wealthy 
monastery. 

(b) THE REDENTORE. 

In 1576, Venice was visited by a severe epidemic of 
plague, which carried off 50,000 persons in the city and 
lagoons. As a votive offering for preservation from this 
calamity the Republic determined to erect a church to the 
Redeemer. The edifice was built in 1577 by Palladio. It 
may be conveniently combined in one excursion with San 
Giorgio Maggiore. On the way to it, as you skirt the quay 
of the Giudecca, you pass the front of the secularised 
church and convent of the Zitelle. 

The Redentore is a Franciscan church. 

The facade illustrates, still more strikingly than San 
Giorgio, the futile attempt to combine classical architecture 
with Christian necessities. Both churches, however, it must 
be admitted, form fine simple objects in distant views. 

The interior is even chillier and balder than San Giorgio, 
with ugly loopholes to admit the light. It contains but few 
objects of interest in its cold blank desert of eighteenth- 
century whitewash. 

R. aisle : first altar, poor Nativity, by Francesco Bassano ; 
third altar, Christ bound to the column, by Tintoretto. 

The High Altar, under the dome, has good late marble 



v.] THE CHURCHES 163 

reliefs— in front, the Way to Calvary ; at the back, the 
Descent from the Cross, by Mazza da Bologna ; the figures 
of the two men prising open the sarcophagus in the last are 
characteristic of the late desire to show power of represent- 
ing violent movement. On the Altar itself, a Crucifixion, 
with St. Mark and St. Francis, patrons of the city and the 
order, by Campagna. 

In the Sacristy, behind the High Altar, are three beautiful 
^Madonnas, of the school of Bellini, the particular attribu- 
tion of which has been much debated. 

The Franciscan who shows the pictures will probably 
describe them as the work of Giovanni Bellini ; this is not 
now generally accepted. The loveliest and earliest is en- 
closed behind shutters, in an early frame ; it represents 
**Our Lady, in red, with the sleeping Child on a pillow 
upon her knees, attended by two exquisite little musical 
angels. On the parapet are the symbolical fruits so often 
represented in this subject ; above the green curtain appears 
the red-beaked goldfinch, connected by a well-known legend 
with the Crucifixion. This lovely work is now generally 
assigned to Alvise Vivarini. The painter's imagination has 
been touched by some vision of simplicity mingled with 
solemnity, the perfection of unconscious seriousness ; and 
in turn we are moved by the guileless charm of the little 
musicians. 

The * second picture is later in date, and is now usually 
attributed to Bissolo ; it has Our Lady and the Child, 
between St. Mark and St. Francis (city and order). 

The * third, also a very beautiful picture, has Our Lady 
and the Child between the youthful St. John and St. 
Catharine. It is doubtfully assigned to Pasqualino. 

These three exquisite pictures form the real reason for a 
visit to this otherwise bare and uninteresting church. 

The altars in the L. aisle have only one picture of any 
interest, a weak Ascension, by Tintoretto, on the altar next 
the door. 

The picturesque canals of the Qiudecca, at the rear, are 



1 64 THE CHURCHES [v. 

worth exploring in a gondola. They are crowded with fish- 
ing-craft and live-fish baskets. It may be worth while to add 
in passing that the word Giudecca has nothing to do with 
Jews, and that the Ghetto was never situated here — in spite 
of the inveterate error of English tourists. The island was, 
and is, the fishing suburb of Venice. 



Group I. 

S. GIOBBE. S. ALVISE. 

SAN GIOBBE. 

[As a general rule, holy persons who died before the 
Christian period are not invoked by the Church as saints. 
But on the Adriatic coast of Italy, so exposed to plague, 
an exception was early made in favour of the Patriarch 
Job, the grievous sufferer from boils and Mains, plagued 
by Satan " from the sole of his foot unto his crown " ; it was 
thought that he must feel a personal sympathy for the 
plague-stricken, so churches were dedicated to him and 
pictures painted for him throughout the whole of this 
ravaged region. No doubt the intercourse with the East 
itself, where the feeling for Old Testament saints was 
always stronger, contributed to this somewhat irregular 
practice, an excuse for which was found in the text, " Go 
to My servant Job, and offer up for yourselves a burnt 
offering ; and My servant Job will pray for you : for him 
will I accept." But the truth seems to be that the plague- 
stricken in their despair were ready to take any chance 
of relief that seemed to offer. (Jeremiah and other Old 
Testament personages also form similar exceptions.) 

In the poor and squalid district which lies to the north- 
west of Venice, the Franciscans, the Salvation Army of 
their day, built a church to St. Job, near the crowded 
and insanitary Jewish Ghetto. The adjacent parish, also 
Franciscan, is that of Sant' Alvise— i.e. St. Louis of 
Toulouse, the Prince who gave up the inheritance of a- 



v.] THE CHURCHES 165 

crown for the coarse brown robe of a begging friar. A 
knowledge of these facts is necessary to a proper com- 
prehension of San Giobbe, and of the works of art else- 
where removed from it. The existing somewhat uninterest- 
ing church, in the early Renaissance style, dates from 1462, 
and was designed by Pietro Lombardo. Though it lies 
remote, and contains few objects of interest, I strongly 
advise a visit to it, and to the neighbouring church of 
Sant' Alvise, before the visitor begins his studies at the 
Academy.] 

San Giobbe may be reached (1) direct by gondola ; (2) 
on foot, by the Merceria ; thence, turning R. at Goldoni's 
statue, along the new main thoroughfare known as the 
Corso, to the Cannaregio ; (3) by steamer (10 c.) to San 
Geremia Station. All three routes unite at San Geremia, 
whence one may walk on either side of the Cannaregio or 
Canal di Mestre (R. side preferable). The great palace 
opposite, next to the church of San Geremia, is the Palazzo 
Labia, seventeenth century, imposing by mere mass. The 
first bridge over the canal is decorated (or the opposite) 
with grotesque heads of the worst baroque period, justly 
stigmatised by Ruskin for their unspeakable foulness and 
vileness of expression. Beyond it, on the L., the first build- 
ing is the uninteresting Palazzo Manfrin (feeble picture 
gallery) ; while on the R. towers the Ghetto Vecchio, look- 
ing from this point like a single building, but really a 
tangled mass of tenements. Go as far as the bridge with 
three arches, across the Cannaregio, and then turn to the 
L. A minute's walk brings you thence into the little Campo 
of San Giobbe, in front of the church and the desolate 
former Franciscan monastery. The lonely small yard, with 
its well and arcade, is strangely picturesque in its downfall. 
The best point about the church is its doorway, a fine 
piece of early Renaissance work, in the style of the 
Lombardi. On the pilasters are admirable winding con- 
volvulus plants, with exquisite birds ; the capitals are semi- 
classical, acanthus leaves and ox-sculls. In the lunette 
is a striking Franciscan relief, inferior in workmanship to 



t66 THE CHURCHES [v. 

the decorative detail, but full of inner meaning ; it repre- 
sents Sinai, as a mount of light, upon which rays of mercy 
descend from heaven ; to the L., St. Francis kneels in 
prayer ; to the R., St. Job ; thus mingling the Jewish and 
Christian dispensations, and pointing out that plague and 
misery on the one hand, and salvation on the other, come 
to Jew and Christian alike. The close proximity of the 
crowded and insanitary Ghetto of course gives point to th:c 
impressive and speaking symbol. On the summit of the 
arch and on the entablature are placed excellent statuettes 
(probably by Pietro Lombardo) of three great Franciscan 
saints, all more or less connected with the ministry to the 
plague-stricken — St. Antony of Padua, the patron of suffer- 
ing children ; St. Bernardino of Siena, with his symbol, the 
I.H.S. ; and St. Louis of Toulouse (Sant' Alvise) in canoni- 
cals as Bishop, to represent the adjacent parish, also Fran- 
ciscan. The whole work is thus very appropriate to a 
Franciscan mission-church, in a poor and densely-packed 
district, inhabited alike by Jews and Christians. 

The interior has relatively few plague-objects, though one 
or two may be detected by the reader for himself on the 
strength of the information already supplied him. I will 
not here repeat it. There is also much good plastic work of 
the school of the Lombardi. Near the door, statuette of 
St. Antony of Padua, carrying the infant Christ. Left aisle, 
first chapel, by Pietro Grimani (circa 1550), fine stone car- 
ving. Second chapel, of Florentine architecture and sculp- 
ture (probably by Rossellino), fine marble altar ; on the 
ceiling the Four Evangelists, glazed terra-cotta, by Luca 
della Robbia : an intrusive bit of Florence at Venice. In 
the choir exquisite ^reliefs and ^decorative friezes by Pietro 
Lombardo, erected at the expense of Doge Cristoforo Moro 
(the donor of the existing building) in 1462. Below is his 
tomb bearing his device, the mulberry (moro), also by the 
Lombardi. In the Sacristy is a portrait of Doge Moro, copy 
after Bellini, as well as a good picture by Previtali, Madonna 
and Child, with St. John Baptist and St. Catharine — a 
marriage of St. Catharine (duplicate in the National Gallery 



v.] THE CHURCHES 167 

in London). Also a terra-cotta bust of St. Bernardino of 
Siena, the great Franciscan preacher. 

But the main reason why I have brought you thus early 
to this small church is this — its chief altar-piece was 
formerly a famous picture by Giovanni Bellini, which you 
will see hereafter at the Academy — a plague-picture devoted 
to St. Job and his Franciscan fellow-saints — the meaning of 
which will only become apparent to you after you have seen 
this church with its expressive and allusive doorway. Go 
round the building, then, with these two main ideas in your 
head — first, that it is a plague-church, dedicated to St. Job ; 
and second, that it is a Franciscan church, full of memorials 
of the Franciscan missionary saints, who likewise ministered 
to the poor and suffering. 

Sant' Alvise, close by, may conveniently be visited at the 
same time. It was built by Antonia, daughter of Doge 
Antonio Venier, in 1388, in obedience to a vision in which 
the good Franciscan bishop, St. Louis of Toulouse, appeared 
to her miraculously. It was a nuns' church and has there- 
fore a nuns' singing gallery, screened by fine ironwork. 
Among its pictures is one, uninteresting, by the Heirs of 
Paolo Veronese, representing St. Louis at the feet of Pope 
Boniface VIII. The building is chiefly famous, however, 
for eight small panels, absurdly overpraised by Ruskin, and 
attributed by him to Carpaccio as a boy of eight or ten 
They are obviously the work of a poor imitator of the 
master's manner. The subjects are scenes from the Old 
Testament history. 



S. PIETRO DI CASTELLO. 
A visit may be made on some spare afternoon to San 
Pietro di Castello (formerly St. Sergius and St. Bacchus) 
the original cathedral of Venice. Ecclesiastically the town 
depended from the beginning upon the Patriarchate of 
Grado (representative of the old Patriarchate of Aquileia), 
but this church was the cathedral of the local Bishop of 
Castello, first instituted in 1091. In 1451 the seat of the 



1 68 THE CHURCHES [v. 

Patriarchate was removed from Grado to this place. San 
Pietro, which stands on a separate island, may be reached on 
foot by going along the Riva and then following the broad, 
dry canal which runs northward past the Public Gardens ; 
the last bridge on the L. leads you down a narrow dirty 
street till you can see the campanile and church before you. 
The approach by land is so squalid, however, that I recom- 
mend you to go rather in a gondoia. 

The camfto in front of the church is spacious and imposing. 
The campanile (a handsome building of 1474), unlike almost 
all others in Venice, is coated with white marble from top to 
bottom, and, in its long straight lines and fine proportions, is 
extremely stately. It retains the general tone of the Roman- 
esque campanili. 

The facade of the church presents a good average specimen 
of a Palladian design, 1596. The large building to the R. of 
the church, now a barrack, is the ancient patriarchal palace. 
The interior of the old cathedral contains little of interest 
except a handsome marble patriarchal chair, said to have 
been brought from Antioch. It is covered with ancient 
Arabic inscriptions from the Koran, in the old Cufic charac- 
ter. The third altar has a tolerable altar-piece by Marco 
Basaiti, representing the patron, St. Peter, enthroned. Under 
the High Altar lies the body of San Lorenzo Giustiniani, the 
first Patriarch of Venice. Behind it, in a niche, is a con- 
temporary statue of the saint, from which the features in 
later pictures appear to have been taken. 

This out-of-the-way church thus deserves a visit on account 
of its connection with the episcopate and patriarchate of 
Venice, the seat of which was only removed to St. Mark's 
in 1807, by Eugene Beauharnais, when Viceroy of Italy. 



VI 

THE ACADEMY 

THE Venetians alone among" Italians stood apart 
from the Latin west. Alone among societies with 
a great destiny the State of Venice had no basis in landed 
property. There was no body of Ghibelline nobles sup- 
porting the Emperor ; there was no Guelph party acting 
with or supporting the Pope ; for although the Venetians 
were good Catholics, their attitude to the Papacy was 
detached. 

This aloofness from Empire, Papacy, and party politics 
was coincident with a deep reverence for the power and 
splendour of the state, comparable to that of her citizens for 
the majesty of Rome. 

Like the Romans, the Venetians in the Middle Ages 
appear to have regarded the practice of the fine arts with 
indifference ; they desired to emphasise the beauty of their 
city by architectural magnificence ; they thought it proper 
to recognise the religion of the state by adding the lustre of 
mosaic and sculpture to its ceremonial ; but it was sufficient 
to employ foreigners from Constantinople or Verona, or 
wherever else it might be, to do the work. There was, 
therefore, no native school of Venetian painting or sculpture 
to compare with those of Siena and Florence in the four- 
teenth century. 

It is true that S. Marco was at that time one of the most 
beautiful churches in Western Europe ; no mediaeval scheme 
of mosaics could compare with the twelfth and thirteenth 
centuries work in Venice ; nowhere south of the Alps had the 
imagination of the sculptor formed such beautiful things, but 
so far as we know the character of everything depended upon 
the genius of men who were not Venetians. The ascetic 
and transcendental quality in mediaeval art was repugnant 

.6q 



170 THE ACADEMY [vi. 

to a trading and pleasure-loving community whose habit was 
positive rather than speculative. Practical, not aesthetic, 
virtues found favour in Venice. 

It was not till nearly half-way through the fifteenth cen- 
tury that the first school of native painting appeared in the 
family of the Vivarini in Murano. Antonio, the first painter, 
has work dated from 1440. For some years he was in part- 
nership with a German known in Venice as Giovanni 
d'Allemagna. Examples of their joint work will be found in 
the Academy, No. 625 ( a large picture, Madonna and Child, 
with the Four Doctors), and in an altar-piece in the chapel 
of St. Tarasio at S. Zaccaria. Later in life Antonio worked 
with his brother Bartolommeo, and each of them also did 
much independent work. Antonio is supposed to have 
lived between 141 5 and 1470 — Bartolommeo between 1420 
and 1499. They were succeeded by Alvise, the son of 
Antonio, who lived between 1444 and 1 502-1 503 ; he was the 
last painter of his family. 

The school as a whole did not reflect the most permanent 
tendencies in Venetian art. It is ecclesiastical and ascetic 
in temper ; its habit is stiff, even severe, yet the emotional 
life is keen ; deeper feeling is reached than is usual among 
the officially devout Venetians, and sometimes there is a 
charmingly naive expression, as in the altar-piece, No. 607 in 
the Academy, by Alvise Vivarini. In the last years of the 
fifteenth century the art of Alvise was modified by the new 
feeling that appeared every where in Italy at this time. 

The rivals of the Vivarini were the two brothers Gentile 
and Giovanni Bellini. 

In the early part of the fifteenth century the Umbrian 
painter Gentile da Fabriano and Vittore Pisano of Verona 
were brought to Venice to paint in the Ducal Palace. Jacopo 
Bellini, a Venetian, became the assistant of Gentile da 
Fabriano, and is supposed to have worked with him till 
Gentile died in 1427. When the two sons of Jacopo, Gentile 
and Giovanni, were old enough, they were sent to Padua to 
learn the trade of painting. 

They had for their fellow-apprentice, Mantegna, and as a 




Photograph • M&nsell 

PORTRAIT OF LOREDANO 

(Doge 1501-1521) bv Giovanni Bellini. Now in the National 

Gallery, London 

Compare with Titian's portrait of Pope Paul III 




Photograph : Anderson 



PORTRAIT OF POPE PAUL III 

Painted in 1543 BY Titian. Now at Naples 

Compare with the portrait of the Doge Loreclano and note the development of 

Venetian portraiture within the first half of the sixteenth century 



VI.] THE ACADEMY 171 

dominant personality, the Florentine Donatello, who was 
working in Padua. Classical influence was strong, and it 
was not until the Bellini returned home that their style was 
developed in accordance with the Venetian love of life in its 
sensuous aspect. 

The change in Giovanni's work is supposed to become 
marked about the year 1460, when he gave up the search for 
form, and the tense habit of the Taduan school. A picture 
in the Correr Museum, doubtfully attributed to Giovanni 
Bellini, shows the style of the Paduan period. 

The atmosphere in Venice was very different to that 
of Padua. The Venetian State was religious in the interests 
of good citizenship, while the individual was mundane. 
Political habit, however, caused the State to fear excess of 
saintliness, the common sense of the people kept luxury 
within bounds. 

This combination is reflected in the balanced richness of 
Giovanni's great altar-pieces, in which serene emotion takes 
the place of devoutness, and ecstasy of soul is replaced by 
ceremonial movement and measured gesture. The fiery joys 
of youth have no part in the picture from S. Giobbe (now 
No. 38 in the Academy) ; the passion of the scholar, the 
contemplative habit of the sage has never moved the 
priestly figures at the Frari. Giovanni's Madonnas feel no 
mystic devotion, what is revealed to them is the magnificence 
of the Kingdom of Heaven upon earth, not the passion by 
which it is to be won. Giovanni painted the poetry of the 
judicious middle way— of contented well-being, and he 
painted it with a superb command of method. 

The later years of the fifteenth and the early years of the 
sixteenth century witnessed an extraordinary change in Italy. 
In Florence it was manifest in the work of Leonardo da 
Vinci ; compare, for instance, his Last Supper, painted at 
Milan, and finished in 1498, with the Last Supper of Ghir- 
landajo, in the refectory at Ogni Santi, in Florence. The 
change is equally remarkable if we compare the Pieta of 
Michael Angelo ( 1498), in St. Peter's at Rome, with Madonna 
and Christ, by Mino da Fiesole, in the Bargello at Florence. 



172 THE ACADEMY [vi. 

This new development had a twofold source; it was partly 
technical and partly due to a new attitude of mind. The 
use of oil-paint, which had been introduced at Venice by 
Antonella da Messina about the year 1472, had become 
common, while closer and more .accurate habits of obser- 
vation taught artists to see things in their true relationships ; 
they found out that everything is surrounded by an atmo- 
sphere, that there is an aerial as well as a linear perspective, 
and that things are defined in light and shade rather than 
in line. 

The new attitude of mind led to even greater changes 
than these developments of method. 

In Venice, owing to the detachment of the State, the 
genius of the people followed its natural bent more freely 
than in other parts of Italy, where the influence of the Papacy 
and of Spain was used unrelentingly in favour of the Catholic 
reaction. Thus there is a freshness and a spontaneity in 
Venetian art throughout the sixteenth century which is found 
in other parts of Italy only in the early years of the period 
and in individual cases. 

In the hands of Giorgione and Titian the art of Venice 
became Romantic. The formal, strictly balanced, and 
dignified work of Giovanni Bellini, serene in temper and 
rich in colour, passed into the romantic pastoral of 
Giorgione's " Concert Champetre " (at the Louvre). Instead 
of the magnificent altar-piece of S. Giobbe, in which Madonna 
is raised on a high throne with a court of saints at her feet, 
Titian paints a " Santa Conversazione," in which a well-bred 
family takes its pleasure in lovely woodland. The gracious 
backgrounds of the fifteenth century become the glorious 
mountain ranges of Titian and the inspired landscape of 
Tintoretto, as he painted it in the Scuola di S. Rocco. How 
fine was the portraiture of Bellini we can see in his painting 
of the Doge Loredano, where the bourgeois type reaches its 
most complete ideal. We shall be able to comprehend in 
some sort the nature of the change if we compare with this 
Titian's terrific analysis of Paul III at Naples. Again, if we 
compare the allegories of Giovanni Bellini with the " Bacchus 




Photograph: Anderson 

HEAD OF CHRIST IN THE CHURCH OF S. ROCCO 

Attributed to Giorgione 
An example of his "romantic" style which changed the course of Venetian art 




X 

o 

Q 

3 » 

< y 

< '<*? 



vi.] THE ACADEMY 173 

and Ariadne," painted by Tintoretto for the Antecollegio in 
the Ducal Palace, we shall understand in some degree how 
the great Venetians of the sixteenth century made a larger 
and wider synthesis. 

The great collection of Venetian pictures, the most 
important object to be seen in Venice, after St. Mark's 
and the Doge's Palace, is housed (since the French 
Revolution) in a building now known as the Accademia 
delle Belle Arti. But the edifice itself was erected (in 
great part) far earlier, and for a very different purpose ; and 
since some of its noble halls still retain their old shape and 
primitive splendour, while some few of its pictures still oc- 
cupy their original places, it may be well to know before- 
hand the history of the building. 

The Scuola della Carita (Brotherhood of Charity) was 
the earliest of the great Venetian Scuole (not Schools, but 
lay charitable Fraternities) ; and the Scuole di San Rocco, 
di Sant' Ursula, and di San Giovanni Evangelista (the two 
last to be described later) were to some extent imitations of 
it. The Fraternity was founded in 1260, for the purpose 
of ransoming Christian captives among the Infidels and for 
other charitable objects. The larger part of the existing 
building is late in date, having been erected by the great 
Renaissance architect Palladio in 1552. In 1807, Napoleon, 
after his conquest of Italy, turned the place into an Academy 
of Art, and brought here many pictures from suppressed 
churches, monasteries, and charitable guilds. The collection 
has since been increased from various sources, and the 
building enlarged by recent additions. 

The Academy is the best place in which to form an idea 
of the consecutive development of Venetian art. It 
contains few but Venetian pictures ; and in the following 
description I lay stress for the most part upon these only, 
to the comparative exclusion of alien Italian or foreign 
works. 

Do not try to see the whole of the Academy at once ; 
come here often, and study slowly. If your time is limited, 



174 THE ACADEMY [vi. 

confine yourself mainly to Rooms I, II, IX, X, XVI, XVII, 
XVIII, and XX. 

[The Academy is open on weekdays from 9 to 3, 1 franc : 
on Sundays from 10 to 2, free. Take your opera-glass.] 

The Academy may be reached in three ways : (1) by 
gondola ; (2) by omnibus steamer, which stops at the door 
(10 c.) ; (3) on foot, thus : from the south-west corner of the 
Piazza San Marco, through the Calle San Moise, past the 
appalling and ugly baroque facade of the church of San 
Moise (l.), overloaded with fly-away ornament (1668), in- 
cluding what are meant for camels but look like llamas ; 
then, by the Via 22 Marzo, past the uglier and still more 
barbarous fagade of S. Maria Zobenigo (1680) ; obliquely 
(to the R.) across the Campo San Maurizio, and obliquely 
(to the L.) across the broad Campo S. Stefano j thence by 
the Iron Bridge to the door of the Academy. The view 
from the bridge (or still better from the Campo beyond it), 
looking back on the russet houses, the red tower of S. Vitale 
(S. Vidal), and the Palazzo Cavalli, recently renovated for 
Baron Franchetti (a Murano glassmaker), is picturesque 
and striking. 

Before entering the Academy, stand in the little Campo 
della Carita, to the left of the main door (with Minerva on 
a lion). You have here, to the L., the secularised church 
of the Carita (fourteenth-century Gothic), now sadly ruined 
by alterations in its windows, and forming part of the 
Academy. In front of you stands the old gateway of the 
Scuola della Carita. Notice, centre, the gilt relief of Our 
Lady of Charity, attended by angels : the Child holds out 
his caressing hand to members of the Fraternity below. 
On the L. is St. Leonard (bearing the fetters which are his 
symbol as patron of captives) with two members of the 
Brotherhood ; on the R., St. Christopher bearing the infant 
Christ. These form a charming memorial of the original 
purpose of the building : dated 1377. 

Pay. Mount the stairs. The first room which we enter, 



vi.] THE ACADEMY 175 

Room I, 

Hall of the Ancient Masters, 

contains the earliest work of the Venetian Painters. The 
splendid apartment also retains its original decoration as 
the Hall of the Scuola. It was adorned with a Renaissance 
roof at the expense of a brother named Cherubino Aliotti ; 
but as the rules of the Scuola prevented any member from 
putting his name on his gifts, he has preserved his memory 
allusively in the eight-winged cherubs, which form a rebus 
on his name (Cherubino Aii-otti), in the lozenge-panels of 
the handsome ceiling. 

The pictures in this room, though perhaps less interesting 
at first sight to the ordinary tourist as works of art than the 
developed masterpieces of later periods, must be carefully 
studied by any one who wishes really to understand the 
development of Venetian painting. They form the start- 
ing=point, and strike the keynotes ; without them, you 
cannot rightly comprehend what comes later. 

Begin at the further end of the room, to the R. of the 
door which leads into the next hall. 

i. Jacobello del Fiore, 1433. Coronation of the Virgin, 
altar-piece from the Cathedral of Ceneda. In the centre, 
our Lord, enthroned, crowns His mother. On either side, 
clouds of cherubs in blue and seraphs in red. Beneath the 
throne, the four Evangelists, in niches, writing their Gospels. 
Below again, angels (perhaps the Holy Innocents) with 
musical instruments. On the L., a row of Prophets (named 
on scrolls) : Jeremiah, Solomon, David, etc. Behind them, 
a row of Saints, headed by St. Christopher ; each saint 
and prophet attended by an angel. On the R., a row of 
Patriarchs, headed by Moses. Behind them, a tier of saints 
again, with attendant angels. To the far L., below, Virgins. 
To the R., the Bishop of Ceneda (a Dominican), the donor 
of the picture, a small figure, kneeling ; behind him the 
sainted patron of his diocese ; then, St. Dominic, with the 
lily, as spiritual father of the donor ; St. Thomas Aquinas, 



176 THE ACADEMY [vi. 

philosopher of the Dominican order, with church and book ; 
and St. Francis, with the stigmata. A good picture in the 
hard, dry, early decorative manner. 

Compare this at once with a somewhat later version of 
the same subject (much repainted) by Antonio Murano and 
Giova?i?ii Alaman?io (John the German), *No. 33, at the 
corresponding place to the L. of the doorway. Above, 
Christ crowns his Mother, in the presence of the Father and 
the Holy Spirit. Beneath the throne stand the Holy Inno- 
cents (proved as such by analogy) bearing the column at 
which Christ was scourged and the instruments of the Pas- 
sion. Further below, again, are the four Evangelists with 
their symbols, the angel, lion, eagle, and bull ; St. Luke, to 
the R., holds the miraculous portrait of the Virgin which 
he painted, and which is now in the chapel of Our Lady in 
St. Mark's. To the L., behind St. John, come two of the 
Fathers of the Church, St. Jerome, with his church and 
book, and St. Gregory with the Papal tiara ; to the R., 
behind St. Luke, we see St. Ambrose and St. Augustine, 
the former holding the bones of St. Protasius and St. Ger- 
vasius which he discovered by a miracle. In the back- 
ground looms a crowd of saints, conspicuous amongst whom 
are St. Agatha, with her breasts in a dish ; St. Barbara, with 
her tower ; St. Mary Magdalen, with the alabaster box of 
ointment ; and St. Catharine, with her wheel, all to the E. 
Many other saints can be discriminated by their symbols. 
The painting (1440) marks an advance upon the last example, 
and shows German influence. This is a good specimen of 
the manner of the Vivarini, the able founders of the school 
of Murano. (Perhaps a copy of one in S. Pantaleone.) 

Continue down the right wall. 

2. Antonio Veneziano. A little altar-piece, with Madonna, 
St. John Baptist, and St. Jerome ; above, an Annunciation, in 
two divisions. 

3. Michele Giambono (who designed the mosaics in the 
Mascoli Chapel at St. Mark's), about 1440. Altar-piece 
for the Scuola del Cristo at the Giudecca. In the centre, 
Christ, as patron of the Scuola; to the L., St. John the 



vi.] THE ACADEMY 177 

Evangelist ; then, St. Benedict, in black Benedictine robes, 
grasping the book of his rule ; to the R., St. Michael the 
archangel, holding the scales with which he weighs souls, 
and trampling on the dragon ; and St. Louis of Toulouse, 
at his feet, the crown which he renounced for the monastic 
profession. 

8. School of Padua. Fifteenth century. St. Benedict 
and donors. 

7. Early School of Siena. Altar-piece for the Dominican 
Nunnery at Murano, with five Dominican female saints in 
Dominican dress, with their proper symbols and their 
names inscribed ; beneath them, the visitation by which the 
Redeemer revealed Himself miraculously to each. 

13. Unknown Venetian. Fourteenth century. Madonna 
della Misericordia sheltering votaries under her robe, a type 
which will recur frequently in Venice ; she wears the Child 
like a brooch on her bosom. Notice, above, the little Annun- 
ciation in the lozenges. This is a family picture, the votaries 
representing two nuns and their relations. L. and R., the 
two St. Johns, Baptist and Evangelist. 

5. Lore?izo Ve?tezia?io, 1 357. Fragments of an altar-piece ; 
two good figures of St. Peter and St. Mark. Observe the 
conventional types of these two faces. 

On the lower line — 

9. Lorenzo Venezia?io, 1357. Annunciation ; the angel, as 
usual, to the L., and Our Lady to the R. ; above, God the 
Father sends out the Holy Spirit and the infant Christ (a 
rare treatment) ; L., St. Gregory and St. John the Baptist ; 
R., St. James the Greater (erroneously described in the 
Catalogue as San Rocco), with staff and scallop-shells, and 
St. Stephen, with the stones of his martyrdom. 

*io. Lore?izo Veneziano. Splendid altar-piece (for Sant' 
Antonio di Castello) in several sections ; centre, Annuncia- 
tion, with tiny donors — compare it with the preceding ; L., 
St. John the Evangelist, St. Mary Magdalen, St. Dominic 
with the lily, and St. Francis with the stigmata, the latter 
nearest our Lord, this being the altar-piece of a Franciscan 
church ; to the R., St. Antony the Hermit, with Tau- 



178 THE ACADEMY [vi. 

shaped cross on his robe, as patron of the church ; St. John 
Baptist, St. Paul (sword), and St. Peter (keys). Notice the 
conventional types of these faces : each Apostle has his 
recognised cast of features. The figure of God the Father, 
above, sending down the Holy Ghost, was inserted much 
later, and it is by Benedetto Diana. Study this altar-piece 
closely for its concentrated symbolism. 

1 1 . Jacofto Moranzone. Altar-piece of the suppressed 
church of St. Elena in Isola. Centre, the Assumption of 
Our Lady, who is being raised in a mandorla, or almond- 
shaped glory, by six angels ; L., St. Helena, mother of 
Constantine, and patroness of the church for which this was 
painted, holding the True Cross which she discovered ; then 
St. John Baptist ; R., St. Benedict, and St. Elizabeth of Hun- 
gary. The last identification I think doubtful. 

Above this, 14. Maestro Paolo. Virgin and Child, with 
Pieta above ; on the panels, St. James the Greater with his 
pilgrim's staff, and St. Francis with the stigmata. 

End wall, by the staircase. *is. Jacobello del Fiore. A 
large and beautiful decorative panel from the Magistrates' 
Room in the Doge's Palace (Magistratodel Proprio). In the 
centre, Venice (or Justice), with the sword and scales, en- 
throned between her lions ; L., the Archangel Michael with 
his scales and the dragon ; R., the Archangel Gabriel with 
Annunciation lily ; the Latin inscriptions are interesting. 
The appropriateness of the picture to its original place is 
obvious. 

18. Simone da Ciisighe, 1393. Madonna della Miseri- 
cordia, as before, sheltering under her robe a group of 
votaries belonging to a religious order, two of them habited 
as penitents. Around are quaintly naive scenes from the 
life of St. Bartholomew ; above, he preaches, converts a 
princess of Armenia, destroys idols, baptises converts ; 
below, he is condemned by the king, is scourged, is flayed, 
and beheaded ; angels overhead bear his soul to heaven. 

*I9. Madonna and Child, by Niccolo di Maestro Pietro 
(1394?- 1 430?). 

20. Anto7iio VivarinL one of the leaders of the school 



yl] THE ACADEMY 179 

of Murano. Beautiful little decorative figure of St. Law- 
rence. 

31. Unknown Venetian of the fourteenth ce?itury. A 
brilliantly decorative altar-piece. In the centre, Coronation 
of the Virgin — compare with the previous examples ; on the 
sides, naive representations, Italo-Byzantine in character, of 
the life of Christ ; Nativity in a cave, with Adoration of the 
Magi, ox, ass, camels, etc. ; Baptism in Jordan, with angels 
holding the Saviour's clothes ; Last Supper ; Agony in the 
Garden, with Kiss of Judas, and Peter cutting off the ear 
of Malchus ; way to Calvary ; Crucifixion ; Resurrection, 
with Christ and Magdalen in the garden ; Ascension, Christ 
raised in a mandorla before the Apostles and Virgin, with 
angels beneath. All these scenes are good typical early 
examples in the treatment of their subjects. Note for com- 
parison. The small series above represents the Descent of 
the Holy Ghost, and then the Life of St. Francis : he 
receives Santa Chiara ; he strips himself of his worldly 
goods and clothing to enter the little oratory at Assisi ; he 
receives the stigmata from a six- winged red crucified seraph; 
his death, with his soul ascending ; and finally, his glory in 
heaven. These are the conventional St. Francis subjects. 

23. Nicolo Semitecolo. Coronation of the Virgin. 

4. Simo?ie da Cusighe (?). (Second half of fourteenth cen- 
tury.) Four little scriptural episodes, the Entombment, the 
Resurrection, the Ascension, and the Descent of the Holy 
Ghost. Notice in the last the tongues of fire. Another 
highly decorative altar-piece, where we see the native man- 
ner freeing itself from Eastern influence. Compare with 
No. 24. 

24. Michele di Matleo Lamberti?ii. Great altar-piece 
from the suppressed church of St. Elena, as before. In the 
centre, Our Lady and Child, with angels ; very charming, 
and showing already an approach to the peculiar Venetian 
type of the Madonna. Immediately to her L., the patroness 
St. Helena, with the True Cross ; next to her, St. Lucy, with 
her eyes in a dish : R., St. Mary Magdalen, her vase almost 
obliterated, and St. Catharine with her wheel ; above are the 



180 THE ACADEMY [vi. 

Crucifixion and the four Evangelists with their symbols. 
In the predella, beneath, is the history of the invention of the 
True Cross ; St. Helena arrives at Jerusalem ; she inquires 
as to the True Cross, with a debate of Jews as to its where- 
abouts (?) ; the invention of the Cross ; a miracle performed 
by the True Cross discriminates it from those of the two 
thieves found with it ; Helena adores the Cross, which puts 
to flight demons. I do not quite understand all these 
subjects. 

26. Scenes of the Passion, and of the Judgment. Four- 
teenth century. Note the Italo-Byzantine treatment. 

28. Andrea da Mura?io. Ruined altar-piece, a plague- 
offering (see account of the Great Plague-Churches) from 
St. Peter Martyr at Murano. In the centre, St. Vincent 
Ferrer and San Rocco, the latter bearing his pilgrim's staff, 
showing the plague-spot on his leg and attended by his 
angel ; beneath, one of the donors, kneeling. L., the other 
great plague-saint, St. Sebastian ; R., St. Peter Martyr, 
patron of the church, with his knife as before, each of these 
with a donor. Above, Madonna della Misericordia, with 
three Dominican saints, Dominic, Thomas Aquinas, and 
Catharine of Siena, and a royal' saint unknown to me ; 
perhaps St. Sigismund. 

On either side of 28 are four panels, 31-35, by an unknown 
painter of the Venetian school. 

3 1 and 32. Two doctors of the Church, St. Jerome and 
St. Augustine. Note their symbols. (Coarse workmanship.) 

34 and 35. St. James the Greater with his pilgrim's 
staff, and St. Francis with the cross and stigmata. 

On the end wall — 

29. Quirizio da Murano, about 1450. Charming little 
Madonna and Child, which strikes a keynote for subsequent 
half-length Venetian Madonnas. The child is sleeping, as 
often at Venice ; the type of Our Lady has the true Venetian 
neck and features. The arrangement of the curtain and the 
landscape background are characteristic. 

30. Quirizio da Murano. Ecce Homo. 

This room gives you a good idea of the general character 



VI.] THE ACADEMY 181 

of Venetian painting before the rise of the Bellini and 
Vivarini. 

Mount the stairs and enter Hall II. 

Hall of the Assumption. 

This hall contains what are considered by the authorities 
to be the chief masterpieces of the collection, arranged 
without reference to chronological order. It therefore com- 
prises several works of various ages. 

Before entering the room, sit on the last seat in Room I, 
facing **Titian's Assumption, No. 40 (within), the effect of 
which is better seen from various parts of this room than 
from the further hall which actually contains it. This great 
picture is the masterpiece of the mighty Venetian artist of 
the High Renaissance ; it was painted as an altar-piece for 
the High Altar of the Franciscan Church of the Frari, whose 
official title is " St. Mary in Glory " (Santa Maria Gloriosa), 
and therefore it appropriately represents the Assumption of 
the Virgin. The scheme of colour is so arranged that the 
spectator's eye is irresistibly drawn towards the ecstatic 
figure of the ascending Madonna in the centre. She mounts 
as if of herself, impelled by inner impulse, but on clouds of 
glory borne by childish angels, the light on whose forms is 
admirably concentrated. But the spectator sees chiefly the 
rapt shape of Our Lady herself and the brilliant golden haze 
behind her. She holds out her arms to the Lord in heaven. 
Above, the Almighty Father descends to receive her, floating 
in a vague halo of luminous cherubim. The lower and 
darker portion of the picture, in relatively earthly gloom, 
has the figures of the Apostles, in somewhat theatrical atti- 
tudes of surprise and agitation, looking up with awe towards 
the ascending Madonna. This lower half is best seen from 
much nearer ; indeed, you must view the work from several 
positions in order fully to understand it. The youthful 
Apostle in red, on the R., with outstretched hands, is 
obviously a last reminiscence of the figure of St. Thomas 
receiving the Holy Girdle, with which visitors to Florence 



1 82 THE ACADEMY [vi. 

and Prato will be already familiar. This great picture is 
grandiose in conception and fascinating in its apparent ease 
of accomplishment. There is no place for undefined emo- 
tion, nor for unsatisfied desire ; no suggestion remains 
unrealised. In its brilliant rendering of the joy of the 
senses, in its sumptuousness, it represents the Venetian 
ideal. 

Over the door — 

45. Paolo Veronese. Panel from a ceiling in the Doge's 
Palace. Venice on her throne ; Hercules by her side repre- 
sents her military strength ; Ceres offers her sheaves of corn, 
which appropriately typify the wealth of the mainland. A 
fine example of those fantastic chequers of which we shall 
see many on the decorated ceilings of the Ducal Palace. 

To the left, when facing the door — 

*44. Carpaccio. Presentation in the Temple. A beautiful 
scene, which shows Carpaccio in a somewhat different 
character from the designer of the St. Ursulas, as a painter 
of set religious pictures. To the L., Our Lady, accompanied 
by two attendants (one of them bearing the doves for the 
offering), presents the Child to the adoring Simeon, who 
bows to the R. in an attitude of veneration, his robe being 
sustained by two dignified attendants. The summit of the 
picture is formed by one of the rich mosaic niches so com- 
mon at this period, suggested by the side chapel of St. 
Mark's. The three women have an air of unworldly 
placidity ; there is neither hope nor fear, nor spiritual 
exaltation ; the issues of the event seem to suggest no joy. 
The women are limited by a gentle indifference, which 
reappears to some extent in Giov. Bellini's altar-piece in 
S. Zaccaria. At the foot are three angels with musical 
instruments, dainty enough in their way, though suffering 
ill by comparison with the great Bellini, 38. 

On the next wall— 

43. Tintoretto. The Temptation and Fall. This picture 
is really a romance of the Garden of Eden. There is no 
suggestion of the first great sorrow of the world, nor of the 




Photograph : Anderson 

ADAM AND EVE 
A Copy made by Rubens from a work by Titian. Now in the 

Gallery ok the Prado at Madrid 

Compare with the Adam and Eve by Tintoretto, No. 43 in Room ii of 

the Academy 



vi.] THE ACADEMY 183 

tragedy of knowledge. We see the beauty of the human 
form made in the image and likeness : we feel the glory of 
every tree that is pleasant to the sight. The charm lies in 
the vision of life, in the atmosphere of luxurious emotion 
rising like a mirage before our eyes. 

*42. Tintoretto. A Miracle of St. Mark, another picture 
painted for the Scuola di San Marco, which we shall after- 
wards visit. A pagan gentleman of Provence had a Christian 
slave, who persisted in worshipping at the shrine of St. Mark, 
and was therefore tortured for his faith, and ordered to be 
executed. St. Mark in a glory descended to dispel his per- 
secutors. The centre of the picture, below, is occupied by 
the foreshortened figure of the tortured slave, unharmed : 
around stand pagans (always thought of at Venice as Turks 
or Saracens), one of whom shows the shattered hammer of 
torture to the master on an elevated seat to the R. Above is 
the boldly foreshortened figure of the descending saint, 
a powerful muscular frame, shot out of a cannon as it were, 
so swift is its descent. The figures to the L. are painted in 
strange and tortuous attitudes, simply for the sake of over- 
coming difficulties of drawing. Below, on the L., is probably 
the donor. This is a fine piece of rich colour, and a master- 
piece of technical knowledge, but it betrays itself too much 
as an effort after artistic execution. It is probably the most 
generally admired of Tintoretto's paintings. (Other pictures 
of this series in the Royal Palace.) 

41. Tintoretto. The Death of Abel. One of its painter's 
murky masterpieces, lighted by a lightning flash. Immensely 
admired by those who love Tintoretto. Vigorous in action ; 
sombre in colour. 

On the opposite wall— 

39. Marco Basaiii. The Calling of the Sons of Zebedee, 
a good dry picture, hardly worthy of a place in this room of 
masterpieces. Its chief interest lies in its rather gloomy 
landscape. 

**38. Giovanni Bellini, perhaps his masterpiece. Mag- 
nificent altar-piece for the plague-church of San Giobbe. (If 



1 84 THE ACADEMY [vi. 

you have not yet visited it, refer to the account under the 
Great Plague-Churches.) In the centre sits Our Lady, 
enthroned, one of the most beautiful Madonnas ever painted 
by Bellini. Her hand is lifted as if in pity ; the Child in her 
arms raises its eyes as though supplicating the Father on be- 
half of the plague-stricken. On the steps sit three of Bellini's 
sweetest ^musical angels in exquisitely varied attitudes. The 
two most prominent saints are the two great plague-saints of 
the church for which the picture was painted, both almost 
nude ; to the L., St. Job, with his hands folded in prayer, and 
his loins girt with an exquisitely-painted shot silk scarf; to 
the R., St. Sebastian, his hands bound behind his back, and 
pierced with the arrows of the pestilence : the painting of the 
nude and the anatomy in this figure are admirable — the left 
arm stands out boldly from the canvas. To the extreme L. 
and R. are two Franciscan saints, as becomes the Franciscan 
church of San Giobbe ; L., St. Francis ; R., St. Louis of 
Toulouse as bishop ; behind St. Job is St. John the Baptist, 
behind St. Sebastian is a monk, whom I take (doubtfully) to 
be St. Thomas Aquinas. Everything in this beautiful picture 
should be noticed, from the exquisite mosaic niche, like a 
chapel of St. Mark's, above, to the old-fashioned musical 
instruments of the angels below. Do not neglect the 
Renaissance decoration, and the exquisite brocaded bodice 
worn by Our Lady. The feeling of the whole is tender and 
pitiful. 

37. Paolo Vero?iese. Madonna and Saints, an altar-piece 
for the Franciscan church of San Giobbe. Here, Our Lady 
sits in an affected attitude on an elevated throne, backed by 
a gold brocade or mosaic (texture ill represented). By her 
side is St. Paul with the sword ; beneath are St. Jerome, in 
cardinal's dress, and St. Francis with the stigmata ; behind 
him appears St. Justina of Padua. The infant St. John the 
Baptist stands on a pedestal at Our Lady's feet. Splendid 
as a piece of colouring, and considered one of Paolo's master- 
pieces, this gorgeous work is yet a typical example of the 
later faults of the Santa Conversazione. The personages 
have no rational connection with one another, and the 




MADONNA BY BOTTICELLI 

In the Academy at Florence 
Compare with Madonna of the S. Giobbe Altarpiece, No. 38, Venice Academy 



vi.] THE ACADEMY 185 

attempt to combine them into a speaking scene results only 
in strained affectation. 

*36. Cima. Altar-piece for the church of this very Scuola 
(the same whose upper portion is now occupied by the St. 
Ursula series and the Holy Cross pictures). In the centre sits 
Our Lady enthroned, under ahigh-arched Renaissance canopy, 
with a group of cherubs. At her feet are the graceful little 
angels playing musical instruments, so frequent in Venetian 
pictures. (Note how, as time goes on, the angels, once male 
and adults, grow gradually more feminine and more infantile.) 
To the L. are St. Nicholas, with his three golden balls, and 
the two protector saints of the Venetian territory — St. George, 
in armour, and St. Catharine, bearing the palm of her 
martyrdom. To the R. are St. Antony the Abbot, the youth- 
ful figure of St. Sebastian, wounded with arrows, and St. 
Lucy, bearing the palm of her martyrdom. In the distance 
rises one of Cima's favourite mountain backgrounds. 

In this room one can see the fifteenth-century Venetian 
manner passing by gentle transitions into the last and most 
complete development of the school. 

Cima's altar-piece (No. 36) is practically shadowless, the 
figures are clearly outlined, everything is precise, there is no 
attempt at naturalism, the groups of saints are obviously 
ceremonial, the impulse is still hierarchical. 

Carpaccio's altar-piece (No. 24) has lost something of the 
sharp outline, and the heavy robes of Simeon betray the 
growing taste for magnificence. But the simplicity of 
the fifteenth-century manner is still evident in the easy, 
graceful figures of the women of the quietist type. The 
growing romanticism of Venetian art appears in the young 
angel musicians in the foreground. 

In Giovanni Bellini's altar-piece (No. 38) naturalism, feel- 
ing for atmosphere, skilful treatment of the nude, rhetorical 
freedom are all on the increase. Our Lady has become 
magisterial. Figures such as those of SS. Jerome, Sebastian, 
and Francis have gained in romantic presentation, as they 
have lost in spiritual feeling. 

Three years after Giovanni Bellini's death Titian painted 



1 86 THE ACADEMY [vi. 

The Assumption (No. 40), in which all the dominant aspects 
of Venetian art find their full development. There is no 
pretence of representing anything but the magnificence of 
this world, and nowhere has the sense of mastery so com- 
pletely asserted itself. 

Tintoretto's (Nos. 41, 42, 43) complete control of method 
and his facility betrayed him at times into unworthy 
work. But at his best he had the direct habit of naturalism, 
a sense of the beauty of the human form, a feeling for the 
expressive power of colour, a joy in the glory of nature, and, 
above all, a width and sweep of imaginative energy and 
insight, which give, even to his secondary works, an unmis- 
takable individuality. 

Paul Veronese (27 an d 45) had no less power over method 
or sense of colour than his contemporaries, while in control 
of masses of figures and large designs he had probably no 
equal ; yet there was a commonplace element in his imagina- 
tion which caused him to give material expression to ideas 
which, in the mind of Tintoretto, awaken deeper and wider 
emotion. 

The difference between the artists is analogous, perhaps, 
to the difference between the man of letters and the inspired 
prophet. 

From Room II, pass up the steps into 

Room III. 

On the opposite wall, 36. Garofo/o, Madonna and Saints ; 
and 57. Bernardino da Siena? (the signature is false), 
Madonna, and Saints Peter and Paul. 

The apartment beyond this (Room IV, Hall of the 
Drawings), contains a magnificent collection of sketches, 
including several by Leonardo da Vinci, and the mis- 
named " Sketch-Book of Raphael," with drawings by Pin- 
turicchio and other masters of the Umbrian school, to 
describe which lies beyond the province of this Guide. 

Continuing along the main line of rooms, we reach next, 




Photograph: Anderson 

DETAIL FROM "THE CONCERT" 

(NOW IN THE PlTTl) 

Probably an early work by Titian while under the influence of Giorgione 
An example of "romantic " Venetian portraiture 



vi.] 77^ ACADEMY 187 

Room V. 
Hall of the Scholars of Bellini. 

This room contains admirable works of the Early High 
Renaissance, all by scholars of Bellini or their contem- 
poraries. They should be closely studied as giving an 
admirable idea of Venetian painting at the beginning of the 
sixteenth century, just before and during the prime of 
Titian. 

R. of the door as you enter — 

100. Lazzaro Scbastiani. Nativity, with shed, manger, 
ox, and ass ; St. Eustace, St. James, St. Augustine (or 
Nicholas?) and an Evangelist (Mark?). 

On the upper line. 104. Lazzaro Sebastiani. Very 
enigmatical Franciscan picture, representing St. Francis 
(or Antony of Padua) seated in a tree : beneath, St. Bona- 
ventura and another. I do not understand it. 

90. Carpaccio. The Meeting of Joachim and Anna at 
the Golden Gate, before the birth of the Virgin. At the 
sides are two royal saints, Louis IX of France, and 
St. Ursula with her banner and the palm of her martyrdom. 
Some writers call the last St. Elizabeth of Hungary, but 
Elizabeth was not a martyr. 

97. Mansueti. Franciscan plague - picture, from the 
church of St. Francis at Treviso. In the centre, St. 
Sebastian, bound to a column, and pierced with the arrows 
of the pestilence ; extreme L., San Liberale, patron saint 
of the town and district of Treviso, in a magnificent mantle, 
bearing his banner ; to the extreme R., San Rocco, with his 
pilgrim's staff and bundle, raising his robe to show his 
plague-spot ; a little behind, St. Gregory and St. Francis. 
This is a good painting, and a very characteristic local 
plague-picture, full of meaning. The heads have fine 
individuality. 

715 and 602. Two pictures, by Marescalco. On the 
end wall, 639 and 640. Two pictures, by Previtali. 

89. Carpaccio. The Martyrdom of the Ten Thousand 



1 88 THE ACADEMY [yi. 

Christians on Mount Ararat. This confused and mannered 
picture, painted twenty years later than the St. Ursula 
series, suffices to show that the Renaissance had done no 
good to Carpaccio's art ; he has learned now how to draw 
better, but he has lost all his early naivete* and originality 
The work was ordered by the Prior of the Monastery of 
Sant' Antonio di Castello, the monks of which had im- 
prudently admitted a plague - stricken priest : the Prior 
vowed this picture to the ten thousand martyrs if his 
brethren escaped contagion. 

83. Benedetto Diana. Half-length Madonna, between 
St. Jerome and St. Francis. A magistracy picture. 

84. Be?iedetto Diana. Good Madonna, between St. John 
the Baptist and St. Jerome. Compare this with the Bellinis 
and note the differences. 

82. Benedetto Diana. A fine altar-piece from St. Luke's 
at Padua. Our Lady enthroned, with St. Jerome ; the 
painter's personal patron, St. Benedict (I somewhat doubt 
this identification) ; St. Justina, the patron saint of Padua, 
with the sword of her martyrdom ; and St. Mary Magdalen, 
with the vase of ointment. Observe the fantastic decora- 
tions and head-dresses ; we are getting beyond the purity 
of the early period. The colour is crude in parts : the tone 
is affected. 

80. Montagna. Our Lady and Child, enthroned on a 
Paduan throne, with characteristic classical reliefs ; St. 
Sebastian, to the L., with his suffering face, shows it to be 
a plague-picture ; to the R., the common desert-saint, St. 
Jerome. This votive offering comes from the plague-church 
of San Rocco at Vicenza. 

166. Attributed to Marconi. An immense Pieta. 

78. Bartolommeo Montagna (do not confuse him with 
Mantegna, a very different person. Montagna was a 
Vicenza painter, influenced by the Bellini, but with marked 
original characteristics — bold, brown, muscular. This is a 
good specimen of his style, though more pathetic than his 
wont.) A very typical and terrible plague-picture, from the 
plague-church of San Rocco at Vicenza. In the centre 



vi.] THE ACADEMY 189 

stands the wounded Christ, displaying almost painfully the 
marks of His crucifixion: to the L., St. Sebastian, shot 
through with the arrows of the plague ; to the R., St. Rocco, 
with one leg bared to show his plajue-spot. This is 
perhaps the most obvious pestilence-picture to be found in 
Venice ; the air of poignant suffering, combined with 
patience and adoration, on the faces of the saints, strikes 
the keynote. The nude is well painted in warm flesh 
tones. 

76. Marco Marziale (a curious, hard, dry painter, who 
studied in the school of Bellini, but afterwards came under 
the influence of Diirer, and oddly combines German with 
Venetian characteristics). The Supper at Emmaus. The 
pilgrim to the R., and the host holding the hat behind him, 
are extremely German in type, and recall Lucus Cranach. 
But the German tone is ill assimilated. This is an excel- 
lent specimen of its odd artist's peculiar temperament. 

93. Bissolo. Presentation in the Temple. A good picture, 
suggested by a Bellini now in England. Our Lady offers 
the Child to the aged Simeon, behind whom stands Joseph ; 
to the L. are St. Antony of Padua and a female saint 
(possibly St. Justina), offering the doves of the sacrifice ; 
below kneels the donor. 

102. Marco Basaiti. St. George slaying the dragon ; 
close by, the Princess fleeing. The white charger is emblem- 
atic of purity. 

On the wall of entrance — 

69.* Marco Basaiti. The Agony in the Garden ; his 
finest work, and a very noble and touching picture, painted 
as an altar-piece for the plague-church of San Giobbe. The 
picture divides itself into two portions ; the more distant 
represents the Saviour, praying in His agony on the moun- 
tain ; the angel with the cup flying towards Him. Below 
the rock on which He kneels are three sleeping Apostles, as 
is usual in pictures of this subject ; the background is 
formed by a rather lurid and appropriate dawn. To the 
L. are the two Franciscan saints so frequent at San 
Giobbe, St. Francis and St. Louis of Toulouse ; to the 



190 THE ACADEMY [vi. 

R. are St. Dominic and St. Mark. A pathetic picture, full 
of fine devotional meaning. 

Room VI. 

Contains chiefly small Flemish pieces. 176. The Cruci- 
fixion ascribed to Van Dyck. 

Room VII. 
Hall of the painters of Friuli. 

Friuli is a poor mountain district north of Venice ; it pro- 
duced a group of peculiar followers of Bellini, noticeable for 
their dry, formal drawing. I will pass rapidly through these 
pictures, not many of which are of the first order. 

Turn to the R. 154. Girolamo da Santa Croce. St. John 
the Evangelist. 151. Pellegri?io da S. Daniele. An 
Annunciation, showing the later mode of envisaging this 
conventional subject ; the angel's floating draperies are 
intended to indicate that he has travelled through space. 

Passing to the end wall of exit — 

658. Madonna and Child, enthroned with Saints, by 
Cima da Conegliano. 

160. Girolamo da Santa Croce. Two doctors of the 
Church. 

Right of the entrance. 703. Girolamo dai Libri. Ma- 
donna with Angels and Saints. On a screen, in the centre 
of the room, at present stands No. 147, a " Santa Conversa- " 
zione,'' by Palma Vecchio. 

The spirit of Italian bravura carries off this daring 
combination of greens, scarlets, orange, and blues. This is 
one of the most brilliant versions of the Santa Conversazione, 
a variant from the older style of Madonna and Child with 
Saints, devised by the Romantic temper of Venice as a less 
severe and exacting form. The aged Joseph and the ascetic 
St. John are foils to the high tide of life which glows in the 
ample forms of the two women. Palma had little of the 
transcendent power of Titian and Giorgione, but he was 
a follower and a populariser of their methods. 




Photograph: Anderson 

" FLORA " 

Painted in 1523 by Titian. Now in the Uffizi 

Compare with S. Catherine in Palma Vecchio's Santa Conversazione, 

No. 147 in Room vii of the Academy 



VI.] THE ACADEMY 191 

Room VIII, 

Hall of the Flemings, 

contains several excellent Flemish pictures worthy of study 
in themselves, but which I pass by as not specially con- 
nected with Venice. 

Return to Room V, and mount the steps to 

Room IX. 
Hall of Paolo Veronese. 

This room contains several later works of the Venetian 
High Renaissance, mostly large and gorgeous canvases, 
which reflect the magnificence of sixteenth-century Venice. 
They take the public fancy, but are deficient in the higher 
artistic qualities of an earlier period, though usually show- 
ing consummate technique and splendid colour. 

The end wall to the R. is entirely occupied by the great 
* Paolo Veronese of the Supper at the House of Simon the 
Pharisee : one of the most popular pictures in the collection. 
The scene is laid in a vast Renaissance Venetian loggia of 
three arches ; the background represents a glorious imagi- 
nary Palladian Venice. The sense of space is boundless. 
The Christ in the centre, however, is (very characteristically) 
less conspicuous than the group of lordly guests and 
more especially the figure of the gallant nobleman, in 
rich green robes, in the L. foreground, giving orders to the 
attendants. The general tone is merely sumptuous. Many 
of the domestic and almost grotesque episodes among the 
accessories brought down upon the painter the strictures of 
the Inquisition ; he painted out some ; others still remain. 
This is entirely a regal and ceremonial, not in any sense a 
sacred, picture ; it was painted for the Refectory of the 
Dominican monastery of San Giovanni e Paolo, which 
oddly accepted it as a religious work. The subject is one 
of those which, like the Last Supper and the Marriage at 
Cana in Galilee, were usually selected as appropriate for 



192 THE ACADEMY [vi. 

the decoration of refectories. Glowing colour ; superb 
architecture ; faultless perspective ; dashing life — and no 
soul in it, 

On the right wall, in the corner, 204, a study in grisaille 
of the prophet Isaiah, by Veronese. 

Four pictures by Paolo Veronese, illustrating the legend 
of S. Cristina. Take them in the following order : 205, 
having broken her father's idols of gold and silver, to give 
them to the poor, she is carried out into the lake of Bolsena 
by his orders to be drowned ; 206, having escaped this fate, 
she is imprisoned, and visited in prison by an angel ; 208, 
she refuses to worship the statue of Apollo ; 209, she is 
scourged by two executioners at a column. But to Paolo, 
the legend is simply an excuse for painting a handsome 
woman in various telling attitudes. Strange to say, a 
church accepted them as sacred pictures. 

On the lower line to the right of the door is — 

207. Paolo Vero?iese. Our Lady of the Rosary. This is 
a Dominican picture from the Dominican church of St. 
Peter Martyr at Murano. St. Dominic was the introducer 
of the Rosary ; he is therefore represented, attended with 
angels, distributing roses to the faithful, who are typified, 
on the R., by a kneeling Doge in his robe of state, 
accompanied by senators, chamberlains, and the ladies of 
his family ; and on the L. foreground, by a kneeling Pope, 
with his triple tiara, an Emperor, and another group of 
ladies. This is a fine ceremonial picture of its sort, one 
among many, that illustrate how religion was treated 
officially as a branch of State administration. 

*2io. Tintoretto. The Madonna and the Camerlenghi. 
Here we have a characteristic Venetian mode of painting 
portraits. To the L. sits Our Lady with the Child, sur- 
rounded by three Venetian patrons, St. Mark, St. Theodore, 
and St. Sebastian. In front of her, in attitudes of adoration, 
bow or stand the three Chamberlains or Treasurers of the 
Republic ; behind them again are their servants, carrying 
bags of treasure. It was usual for officials of the Republic 
to have their portraits thus painted in the act of worship- 




Photograph : Anderson 



PORTRAIT OF IMHOFF 

Painted in 1521 by Albert Durer 

Compare with the Tintoretto portraits in Room i\- of the Academy 



vi.] THE ACADEMY 193 

ping Our Lady or St. Mark, or some other religious person- 
age. Note how this practice grows out of the earlier little 
figures of the kneeling donor. But now the portrait is the 
real subject of the picture, and the Madonna has sunk into 
a mere excuse for painting it. Nominally, this work is an 
Adoration of the Magi : earthly rulers often had themselves 
painted in this scene, as symbolising the Subjection of kings 
to Christ : here, the pretence is very thin, and money-bags, 
emblems of the treasury, replace the golden cups for gold, 
myrrh, and frankincense, which are usual in more ancient 
treatments. 

On the upper line — 

219. Tintoretto. Assumption of Our Lady, noticeable 
for its luminous atmosphere, and for the apparent lightness 
with which the Madonna is springing upward. At the base, 
the Apostles surround the empty sarcophagus. Compare 
with the great Titian. 

*2I3- Tintoretto. Crucifixion ; a noble picture, in which, 
however, all the saintly forms have assumed the voluptuous 
type of the later Venetian women. It was painted for the 
Confraternity of the Rosary at the Dominican church of San 
Giovanni e Paolo. Like the picture by Veronese opposite, 
the subject is treated in the romantic spirit. In the foreground 
the traditional incidents of the fainting Madonna and the 
casting of lots are represented in the grandiose fashion of 
the sixteenth-century Venetian school. Roman officials on 
immense prancing horses, soldiers with enormous crimson 
banners add to the confusion and air of excitement, con- 
trasting with the great semicircle of richly dressed on- 
lookers in repose in the background. 

224, 225, 243, and 242. Portraits of Venetian nobles, 
by Tintoretto. These admirable studies represent solid, 
common-sense people, without much individual distinction 
— men growing grey in attempting to secure the preserva- 
tion of a society already crumbling to pieces. 

End Wall. On the upper line on either side of the 
door, 227 and 239, other portraits of Venetian aoble* 
men. 



i 9 4 THE ACADEMY [vi. 

217. The Descent from the Cross, with Our Lady fainting, 
by Tintoretto. 

725. The Presentation, by Ti?itoretto. Formerly in the 
Church of the Gesuiti. An interesting picture. 

Right Wall. 252. Tintoretto. The Woman taken in 
Adultery. Full of glowing warm colour. This wall has 
works of Carletto Caliari, son and pupil of Paolo Veronese, 
and other artists of the same school, more or less incipiently 
decadent. 

*252. Bassano (Leandro). The Resurrection of Lazarus ; 
a good picture in its way, but the buxom Mary Magdalen in 
the foreground looks much more decidedly like a sinner than 
a penitent ; she is simply a careless, voluptuous Venetian 
woman. Nevertheless, in technique this is perhaps the 
master's best work. 

255. Paolo Veronese. Crucifixion. The main subject, 
so tremendous in import, is relegated to a small portion of 
the picture on the extreme L., and that in the background : 
even of this, the most conspicuous figures are those of the 
too earthly Magdalen at the foot of the Cross, and the good 
centurion, St. Longinus, represented in the very act of 
conversion. 

The scene is treated " romantically," and a contrast is made 
between the walls and towers of Jerusalem, and the crosses 
on Golgotha, between the splendours of the Roman officials 
and Jewish women, and the shameful punishment and 
quarrelling servants. 

258 and 262. School of Veronese. Studies of Faith and 
Charity. 

*26o Paolo Veronese. The Annunciation ; a work which 
it is most instructive to compare with earlier Venetian and 
Florentine examples. All the old formal elements of the 
scene are here retained ; the angel Gabriel still holds a lily, 
and is still (as always) to the L. of the picture ; Our Lady 
still kneels at a prie-Dieu to the R. ; a loggia, now grown 
with Renaissance expansiveness into vastly greater propor- 
tions, separates them as it ought to do : in the background 
is the usual " enclosed garden," though its architecture has 



vi.] THE ACADEMY 195 

become most stately and Palladian. In spite of these formal 
reminiscences, however, of the ancient treatment, the whole 
spirit of the scene is utterly changed. The flying angel 
enters with gracefully arranged draperies, intended to be in- 
dicative of rapid descent through the air ; his face and 
figure have the ample voluptuousness of all later Venetian 
painting. Our Lady's countenance is still sweet, if insipid, 
and recalls somewhat of Titian, and even (in cast of 
features) of Bellini ; but she is merely a dignified, aristo- 
cratic, well-fed, unthinking Venetian lady. This is an ex- 
cellent work of its kind, but certainly ?iot a sacred picture. 
Architecture admirable ; colour fine ; drawing vigorous. 
From the Scuola of the Merchants. 

264. Paolo Veronese. Coronation of the Virgin by the 
first and second Persons of the Trinity, in a vast assemblage 
of miscellaneous saints, many of whom can be more or less 
recognised by their symbols, including the Four Doctors of 
the Church, and the chief Apostles and martyrs. The reason 
for depicting this immense assemblage is that the picture 
was painted for the suppressed church of All Saints (Ognis- 
santi) : it is an excellent work in its way, but again proves 
Veronese's total unfitness for sacred subjects, especially in 
the person of the blue-robed Madonna, who is simply a 
handsome and frivolous young Dogaressa. The saints 
below are painted for their full fleshly faces, their rotund 
anatomy, and their splendid draperies, not in order to excite 
devotional feeling. A fine specimen of Veronese's colouring. 
Eastlake well compares it to the transformation scene of a 
pantomime. 

265. x\ssumption, by Veronese. Here once more the 
formal elements of the Apostles looking into the empty 
sarcophagus are retained, but their attitudes are varied with 
studied care. Again a fine piece of colour. 

Hall X. 

This room is filled with the masterpieces of the latest 
age of art in Venice before the decadence. It contains 



196 THE ACADEMY [vr. 

an immense number of works of great artistic value (now 
less admired than of old — and justly), to relatively few of 
which, however, I can call attention, and that more from the 
point of view of explanation than of criticism. Do not 
think you must pass by pictures simply because I have not 
noticed them. 

Enter from Sala IX and turn to the right. 

On the lower line — 

269. Bo?iifazio. A Sacra Conversazione. In the centre 
Our Lady and Child, with the little St. John the Baptist, now 
a common element in such pictures (borrowed from Flor- 
ence). On the L., St. Joseph and St. Jerome ; on the R., 
two women saints (Mary Magdalen and Catharine? — the 
first seems to hold a box of ointment, the second a book, 
which may indicate the learned princess, who was patron- 
ess of learning). Fine rich colour. 

This Sacra Conversazione is of the same class as the 
brilliant one in Sala VII, by Palma Vecchio, in which the 
hierarchical relationship between the Madonna and saints 
has become a more or less human and natural one. 

On the upper line — 

302. Palma Vecchio. St. Peter enthroned. Here eccle- 
siastical feeling reasserts itself, but the gesture is free and 
unconstrained, and the expression comparatively common- 
place and human. 

5 1 6. A huge murky canvas, long attributed to Giorgione 
(it may once have been his in outline) and still of much- 
debated authorship. It is at present officially attributed to 
Paris Bordone ; it has been much restored and muddled 
about by patchers. It represents the Storm at Sea (see 320), 
referred to in connection with Paris Bordone's magnificent 
picture of the Doge and the Fisherman. The shipload of 
devils are on their way to overwhelm Venice, some of them 
being detached in small boats, or riding very dubious and 
grotesque sea-monsters. To the R., a little in the back- 
ground, ill descried, and without their proper prominence in 
the composition, are the fisherman and his boatload of 
Venetian patrons — St. Mark, St. George, and St. Nicholas. * 



VI.] THE ACADEMY 197 

The saints are peculiarly unimpressive. This picture 
deserves to be looked at for its connection with the famous 
and glorious Bordone, to which it was a pendant. It comes, 
like that great work, from the Scuola di San Marco. 

**320. Parts Bordone. The Doge and the Fisherman ; 
by far the most magnificent work of this painter. Before 
examining it, sit down and read the following account of 
its legendary subject : — 

[On February 25th, 1394 (others say 1345), owing to the 
wickedness of a schoolmaster who committed suicide after 
selling himself to the Devil, Venice was visited by a memor- 
able tempest. While it raged, an aged fisherman made 
fast his boat to the Molo near St. Mark's. As he lay 
there, a grave old man came out of the church, accosted 
him, and offered him a large sum to be ferried over to 
San Giorgio Maggiore. The fisherman, after hesitating, 
on account of the high waves, accepted, and rowed him 
across. There the stranger went in, and fetched out a 
young man of knightly aspect, who joined them ; the two 
then asked to be carried across to San Niccolo di Lido, 
outside, near the mouth of the harbour. After protest, 
the fisherman yielded, and rowed them with difficulty. At 
San Niccolo, both strangers landed, and returned with a 
third person, a venerable old man ; whereupon they de- 
manded to be rowed between the forts which protected the 
harbour mouth into the open sea. When they reached 
the Adriatic, the fisherman beheld a boat manned by devils, 
which was coming with all speed to destroy Venice. The 
three strangers made the sign of the cross ; whereupon 
the devils disappeared, and the storm ceased. At that, they 
rowed back, each to the place where he had embarked ; 
and the grave old man, who landed last at San Marco, 
being asked for the promised reward, made answer that 
he was the blessed Evangelist St. Mark, patron of Venice, 
and that the Doge himself would recompense the boatman. 
The other two passengers, he said, were the holy martyr 
St. George and the blessed bishop St. Nicholas (in order 
to understand the story it is necessary to remember that 



198 THE ACADEMY [vi. 

the bodies or relics of all three of these saints were pre- 
served at Venice, in these three churches). The fisherman 
demurred, and pressed for payment ; but St. Mark, taking 
his ring from his finger, handed it to the man, bidding him 
show the Doge that, and ask for the promised money. The 
fisherman took it, and presented himself before the Doge 
next morning with the ring. The Procurators of St. Mark, 
looking for the ring, which was kept locked up in the 
sanctuary, found it missing, though the triple lock had 
not been tampered with. Thereupon they knew that this 
was a great miracle. The fisherman received a pension 
for life, and a Mass was solemnly said in St. Mark's in 
gratitude for the averted danger.] 

Now, turn to the picture. Bordone envisages the scene 
as a great Venetian state ceremonial. To the R., the 
majestic Doge sits enthroned, in his cap and robe of office, 
under a noble loggia, amid magnificent Renaissance archi- 
tecture. On high seats by his side, and with splendid carpets 
spread beneath their feet, we see ranged the dignified sena- 
tors, splendid portraits of stately Venetian aristocrats, in 
gorgeous robes gloriously painted. The fisherman, escorted 
by a chamberlain, mounts the steps in his simple garments, 
with his limbs bare, and humbly presents to the Most Serene 
Prince the ring which is to prove the truth of his story. At 
the foot of the steps bows a second chamberlain. Behind 
stand a group of Venetian gentlemen. In the foreground, 
the fisherman's boy, a graceful and beautiful figure, lounges 
carelessly on the steps near his father's gondola. The back- 
ground consists of magnificent ideal architecture, suggested 
by that of Sansovino's Libreria Vecchia. Every detail of 
this luminous and gracious work should be closely observed 
and noted ; it has poetry and romance as well as dignity and 
splendour. The decorative detail of the marble and tiles, 
and of the recesses behind the Doge's chair, is alone worth 
much study. The management of light and shade, by which 
the Doge's figure stands out so conspicuously against a dark 
ground, is very masterly. This fine work, representing so 
great and so late a miracle of St. Mark, was painte 1 as one 



vi.] THE ACADEMY 199 

of the decorations for the Scuola di San Marco, near S. 
Giovanni e Paolo. (So, you will remember, were Tintoretto's 
St. Mark Rescuing a Tortured Slave and several others in 
this collection. Piece together your knowledge.) 

295. Bo7iifazio. The Judgment of Solomon ; an excel- 
lent (Magistracy) picture, which needs little comment. It 
enjoins justice. The silent suffering of the real mother is 
well expressed. In the realistic figure of the stout, placid 
philosopher, in the foreground to the right, Bonifazio has set 
his signature upon the picture. The background is a 
charming scene from the southern foothills of the Alps. 

310. Palma Vecchio. Christ and the daughter of the 
Canaanitish Woman. The personages have ample figures 
and serene faces ; possibly portraits. Above it, 

309. Bo?iifazio and Palma Vecchio. Christ and St. 
Philip ; " Philip, he that hath seen Me," etc. 

319. Bonifazio. Massacre of the Innocents; a good 
picture of this odious subject ; but the voluptuous figures 
and expressionless faces of the women wholly detract from 
the feeble attempt at pathos. A heartless work. Bonifazio 
thinks most of his choice of models and of his mode of 
posing them, very little of the horror and terror of the 
moment. Note the lovely landscape. 

315. Palma Vecchio. Assumption. It is worthy of notice 
in this picture that the Glory surrounding Our Lady still 
retains some faint memory of the old form of the mandorla. 
Not a first-rate specimen of its artist : probably an early 
work. Altar-piece of the suppressed church of Santa 
Maria Maggiore. In this, as well as in 310, there is a 
lack of direct inspiration that marks the distinction between 
the art of Palma and of such masters as Giorgione and 
Titian. 

*400. Titian (his last work). Deposition from the Cross. 
Our Lady sustains the dead Christ ; Joseph of Arimathea, 
R. ; Mary Magdalen with pot of ointment, L. A noble and 
pathetic picture, which calls, however, for appreciation, not 
explanation. Titian painted it in his last year, but died 
before it was finished : Palma the. younger finished it. It. 



2oo THE ACADEMY [vi. 

has been much injured by repainting. There is more real 
feeling in it than Titian often shows. 

On the end wall. *3 1 6. Pordenone. His masterpiece ; 
altar-piece of San Lorenzo Giustiniani. In the centre the 
sainted bishop, first Patriarch of Venice (see No. 570 in 
Room XV), stands under a characteristic Venetian chapel 
(like those of St. Mark's), attended by two acolytes in blue 
caps like his own. His features are finely ascetic — they sug- 
gest Cardinal Manning's. In the foreground are F?-anciscan 
saints ; St. Francis, kneeling ; St. Louis of Toulouse, erect, 
in bishop's robes and mitre, surmounted by a Franciscan 
cowl (so that there may be no mistake about him) ; and the 
familiar, earnest saintly face of St. Bernardino of Siena. 
To the R., a huge St. John the Baptist (with his symbol, the 
Lamb of God) occupies a little too much of the picture. His 
anatomy his good, but he is positively gigantic. (Such dis- 
proportion is frequent with Pordenone.) This excellent if 
somewhat frigid work was an altar-piece on the altar of the 
saint in the Franciscan church of the Madonna dell' Orto. 
It is an admirable picture of its kind, aiming hard at an 
arrangement of the saints in natural attitudes. San Lorenzo's 
face is admirably reproduced from earlier portraits. 

In a niche, a statue of Hercules and Lichas, by Canova, 
heroic as to size. 

On the side wall, 328, Savoldo, a, Brescian artist, whose 
works often strangely suggest modern painting. The two 
great anchorites of the Theban desert, St. Anthony Abbot, 
and St. Paul the Hermit, 

280. Bo?iifazio. Saints Bernard and Sebastian. 

284. Bonifasio. Christ enthroned, a magistracy picture ; 
one of several in this room, from the office of the Entrate 
(Customs). Extreme R., St. Mark with his lion, representing 
Venice ; extreme L., St. Justina with her unicorn (symbol of 
chastity), representing Padua. Below the Christ, three 
kneeling saints, probably (almost certainly) the name-saints 
of the magistrates, whose coats-of-arms are painted beside 
them. To the L., St. Louis of Toulouse, with the crown he 
rejected standing close by, and King David (?) or Sigis- 



vi.] THE ACADEMY 201 

mund (?) ; to the R., St. Dominic in Dominican robes, with 
the lily. Christ holds an open book, with an inscription 
enjoining on the magistrates to act with justice. This is a 
very characteristic magistracy picture. 

Above are several admirable figures of saints, in pairs 
and threes, which consideration of space compels me to 
omit, and the grouping of which will now be tolerably com- 
prehensible to the reader. The names on the frames must 
suffice at this stage of your knowledge. They are all magis- 
tracy pictures, and they usually bear the coats-of-arms of the 
donors, which, with the saints, give their Christian names 
and surnames. 

287. Bonifazio. Adoration of the Magi ; another toler- 
able work, which may be compared with 281. Note the 
cavalcade of the Magi to the R., as well as the arms of the 
donors. The evolution of the later Madonna and Child 
from the earlier type is an interesting subject of study. 
Notice how the picture gains in spaciousness and direct- 
ness by the placing of the kings well apart from the crowd 
of attendants. 

*20i. Bonifazio. His masterpiece, and one of the finest 
pictures in this room. Lazarus and Dives ; in reality a 
genre picture of a splendid lordly entertainment. Dives 
bears some resemblance to Henry VIII of England, who is 
said to be represented in his person. He sits at table, 
richly clad, between two courtesans, handsome and regally- 
robed Venetian ladies. The one to the R. listens to music, 
in a pensive attitude, somewhat suggestive of regret for lost 
days of innocence. The musicians, and the page who 
holds the book of music, deserve close attention. To the 
extreme R., Lazarus begs, and dogs lick his sores ; but his 
introduction is just a bit of make-believe, to justify the 
central motive of the picture. Art was long before it could 
get over the superstition that every work must at least pre- 
tend to a sacred subject. Note the large architecture and 
the expansive sense of space in this and other late Venetian 
pictures. Also, the domestic episodes in the background. 
The lordly style of art in the- Venice of the sixteenth cen- 



202 THE ACADEMY [vi. 

tury, proper to a great commercial city, may be very well 
compared with the similar development of Flemish art in 
Rubens and his contemporaries when Antwerp had taken 
the place of Venice. But this glowing work is also remark- 
able for its rare and high poetical imagination. Never have 
the futility and the tragedy of luxurious life been more ex- 
plicitly painted. The somewhat theatrical figure of Lazarus 
excites less pity than the sensuous group at the table. 

*28i. Bo?iifazio. Adoration of the Magi. An excellent 
picture and splendid piece of colour ; interesting also as 
showing the later treatment of these old conventional sub- 
jects. The scene is the usual ruined Temple ; in the back- 
ground, the shed and stable ; over Our Lady's head, the 
star ; the eldest king kneels, as always ; the second king 
presents his gift, which the Child accepts. These two are 
evidently portraits of the noble donors ; their robes are gor- 
geous. To the extreme R. stands St. Joseph, a fine figure. 
In the second arch is the third or young king, represented 
as a Moor (which is the rule in North Italian, German, and 
Flemish pictures). A page kneels beside him and hands 
him his gift. (The three kings represent not only the three 
ages, but also Europe, Asia, and Africa, the two former 
more or less Christianised, the last still mainly Moham- 
medan or heathen, which accounts for the Moorish king 
being always represented as just entering, and being separ- 
ated here from the rest of the picture.) This is a work of 
great dignity. But compare it with the mosaic of the same 
subject in the Baptistery at St. Mark's ! 

278. Bonifazio. Christ and the Woman taken in Adul- 
tery. A splendid specimen of this artist. 

On the End Wall— 

304. Pordenone. Portrait of a woman. 

272. Torbido. Fine portrait of an old woman, probably 
intended as a Sibyl. 

300. Cariani. Portrait of a man. 

The Long Corridor beyond this, known as the Loggia 
Palladiano (because occupying part of Palladio's building), 
contains chiefly modern works, or those of the seventeenth 



vi.] THE ACADEMY 203 

and eighteenth centuries, to which, unless your time is 
unlimited, you need not devote much attention. Among 
them are several good Dutch landscapes and poultry-pieces, 
by Hondekoeter, Fyt, and others, excellent in their way, but 
out of tone with Venice, and needing no comment. 

Four small rooms open out of this Corridor. 

Room XI has works by the Bassani and their successors, 
most of which are also of relatively little importance, though 
they afford materials for gauging the slow decline of Vene- 
tian art. They may likewise be left to the reader's own 
consideration. 

The three following, Rooms XII, XIII, and XIV, contain 
works by Tiepolo, Longhi, Canaletto, Guardi, and a small 
collection of pastels by Rosalba Camera. 

The Corridor beyond this again, Bra?ich II, contains 
unimportant canvases of the Decadence, when the man- 
nerism of later Venetian art had wholly destroyed its beauty 
and spontaneity. The windows here afford a good view of 
the Inner Court of the Carita, and, to the L., of Palladio's 
New Building. 

Room XV. 

Hall of the Holy Cross. 

[The Scuola di San Giovanni Evangelista at Venice 
(a local religious guild, a little behind the Frari), possessed 
as its chief treasure a fragment of the True Cross. This 
most precious object was carried in procession through the 
streets on certain festa days, and became the centre of an 
important cult in early Renaissance Venice. About 1490, 
the Fraternity commissioned Ge7itile Belli?ii and his pupils 
to execute for their Hall a series of pictures on canvas, to 
be hung on the walls like tapestry. They were to represent 
the miracles wrought by this sacred relic, as well as certain 
other episodes in its local history. The conditions under 
which the pictures were painted thus explain many peculiari- 
ties in their mode of treatment ; they were meant to be 
seen, as they now are, round the walls of a room by them- 
selves, and were intended rather as decorated backgrounds 



204 THE ACADEMY [vi. 

than as pictures in the ordinary sense. Formerly, the 
various members of the series were distributed through this 
Gallery in different rooms, surrounded by other works with 
figures of larger size, which made them look a little gro- 
tesque. Their reunion in this octagon, built specially to 
accommodate them, with excellent taste, enables the spec- 
tator to judge their original effect much more truly. 

Carefully distinguish Gentile Bellini, the painter of 
historical scenes, from his brother Giovanni, the devotional 
painter of saints and Madonnas, whose work we have before 
examined. Gentile loved such small figures on rather 
crowded canvases. He struck the keynote of the Hall ; his 
pupils followed him. All these pictures should be carefully 
studied, because, apart from their intrinsic value as works of 
art, and as specimens of the best Venetian technique before 
the age of Giorgione and Titian, they preserve for us so 
many features of old Venice which have now disappeared, 
and also give us such charming glimpses of the domestic 
and public life of the fifteenth century. In particular, one of 
them is our best authority for the appearance of St. Mark's 
before its mosaics were altered. They are thus more than 
pictures ; they are historical documents.] 

Begin near the far end of the room. 

570. Gentile Bellini. 1429-1507. A much injured pic- 
ture, in tempera, of one of the few native Venetian saints, 
San Lorenzo Giustiniani, first Patriarch of Venice, in 1451. 
(Until that date Venice was subject to the Patriarch of 
Grado, but had her own Suffragan Bishop at San Pietro di 
Castello. The Patriarchate of Grado and Bishopric of 
Venice were then merged in the Patriarchate of Venice.) 

561. Lazzaro Sebastiani (or Bastiani). Filippo Mazeri 
(or Massari), a crusader returning from the Holy Land in 
1370, offers to the Scuola di San Giovanni a relic of the 
True Cross, which he has brought home to Venice with him. 
The scene represents the facade and open door of the old 
church of San Giovanni. The Cross is presented on the 
altar. Bastiani conceives and represents it all in the 



vi.] THE ACADEMY 205 

costume and spirit of 1495 or thereabouts. To the L., the 
Fraternity. Foreground at either end, portraits of members. 

562. Giovanni Mansueti. Miraculous healing of a blind 
girl. The daughter of Niccoli Benvenudo da San Polo had 
>no pupils to her eyes. She was cured by the touch of a blessed 
candle which had burned near the Relic. The scene takes 
place in the hall of an old Venetian palace : one wall 
removed, after the old fashion, as in a theatre. Note the 
magnificent ceiling and the Renaissance architecture. Also 
staircase, canal, and gondola. 

563. Gentile Bellini; spoiled by restoration. Cure of 
Pietro di Ludovico from a fever. He was a member of the 
Fraternity and was healed, like the last, by the touch of a 
candle which had been in contact with the Relic. The 
scene is the chapel of the Fraternity. Pietro kneels at the 
altar. In the foreground are brethren in black and scarlet. 
Note the splendid architecture and pavement. 

564. Ma7isueti. A miracle of the Relic. One of the 
Brothers, who disbelieved in such miracles during his life, 
lies dead in the church of San Lio (to the R.). The Relic 
(R. foreground) is being carried in procession to his funeral, 
in 1474. At the old wooden Ponte di San Lio it miracu- 
lously refuses to move further, and no force can compel it. 
Animated picture of Venice at its period. Mansueti himself 
stands near the bridge on the left holding a paper, which 
bears in Latin his name and a profession of faith in the 
truth of the miracle. Note the short gondolas ; also the 
architecture of the background, with spectators looking out 
of windows. 

565. Benedetto Diana; entirely spoiled by bad restoration. 
Another miracle. A child which has fallen from a staircase 
is healed by the Relic. 

566. Carpaccio. Cure of a Demoniac. The time is 
'dawn ; the houses above are in light, the water below still 
dark. The scene is on the Grand Canal, near the old' 
wooden Ponte di Rialto. (Note its character.) Above, 
on the left, the Patriarch of Grado appears on the balcony 
of his Palace, and holds out the Relic which cures the 



206 THE ACADEMY [vi. 

possessed (in brown). Around gather various ecclesiastics 
to aid in the ceremony, with golden candlesticks. The 
gondolas below have gaily-painted canopies, and the gon- 
doliers are in bright costumes ; the sumptuary law com- 
pelling them to be uniformly black was not yet passed. No 
steel prows. A vivid picture of old Venice. 

**567« Ge7itile Bellmi. Procession of the True Cross 
in the Piazza. While the Relic was being carried in state by 
the Fraternity on their fesia (St. John the Evangelist's Day), 
Jacopo de Salis, a merchant of Brescia, heard that his son 
had fallen and hurt his head. He prayed fervently to the 
Relic, and his son was cured. Admirable view of the Piazza 
in 1496. As yet (l.) no clock tower. Examine closely the 
old mosaics on the facade of St. Mark's, now in many 
cases replaced by modern monstrosities. Their subjects 
are as at present, but note how much better these earlier and 
simpler works harmonise with the Byzantine character of 
the architecture. Study them closely : observe the Pharos 
as symbolising Alexandria. Houses then adjoined the 
Campanile. Also observe the gilt gateway at the corner by 
the Doge's Palace. Great movement in the procession 
carrying the gilt reliquary. The brothers wear their white 
surplices. Study this picture long and carefully. It is our 
best evidence for the state of St. Mark's and the Piazza at 
the end of the fifteenth century. Item, it is a glorious piece 
of colour. 

568. Gentile Bellini. A procession to the church of San 
Lorenzo on that saint's festa. In crossing a bridge the 
reliquary fell into the canal. Several persons tried to rescue 
it, but only Andrea Vendramin, Grand Guardian of the 
Brotherhood (afterwards Doge), could see it by a miracle. 
All round, Bellini has painted the chief personages of his 
time, kneeling symbolically, as spectators and approvers of 
the miracle. In the right foreground are the donors of the 
picture, in the black or scarlet uniform of the Brotherhood. 
To the left, a crowd of Venetian ladies, headed by Catherine 
Cornaro, Queen of Cyprus, crowned, in dark green. A fine 
picture. 



vi.] THE ACADEMY 207 

[Study all these works with care, and, after seeing them, 
stroll round one afternoon to the Scuola itself, in order better 
to realise their meaning. By gondola, the Scuola is reached 
from the end of the canal which leads to the Frari ; by land, 
you walk to it best via the Rialto, Sant' Aponal, San Polo, 
and the Rio Terra S. Stin. The building is not in itself very 
interesting, but it has a nice bit of fourteenth-century work 
and a little piece of Lombardi portico, and it helps you to 
restore the mental picture. Described p. 115.] 

In the apse beyond this room (apse of the old church of 
the Carita) are two pictures, also of the school of Gentile 
Bellini. Two of them come from the Scuola di San Marco^ 
a beautiful building near San Giovanni e Paolo, now the 
Civil Hospital. . These two are — 

569. Mansueti. St. Mark healing Anianus, who, being a 
cobbler, had hurt himself with an awl. St. Mark having come 
to Venice from Alexandria, Venetian painters generally con- 
ceive him as surrounded by orientals in turbans. 

571. Mansneti. St. Mark preaching at Alexandria. 
Observe elsewhere other pictures from this Scuola (see 
p. 130). 

Room XVI. 
Hall of St. Ursula. 

This room (part of the old church of the Carita) contains 
a series of paintings from the life of St. Ursula, all by Vittore 
Carpaccio, probably a pupil of the Bellini, who painted be- 
tween 1490 and 1522. Carpaccio is the best representative 
of the sportive and decorative character of the Venetian 
school at the beginning of the sixteenth century, and the 
graceful works collected here are his masterpieces. He is 
supreme as a story-teller. Before examining these examples 
of his art in detail, sit down on one of the little red stools 
and read the following short account of their subject : — 

[St. Ursula was a British (or Bretonne) princess, brought 
up as a Christian by her pious parents. She was sought in 
marriage by a pagan prince, Conon, said in the legend to be 
the son of a king of England. The English king, called 



208 THE ACADEMY [vi. 

Agrippinus, sent ambassadors to Maurus, king of Britain (or 
Brittany) asking the hand of his daughter Ursula for his 
heir. But Ursula made three conditions : first, that she 
should be given as companions ten noble virgins, and that 
she herself and each of the virgins should be accompanied 
by a thousand maiden attendants ; second, that they should 
all together visit the shrines of the saints ; and, third, that the 
Prince Conon and his court should receive baptism. These 
conditions were complied with ; the king of England collected 
eleven thousand virgins, and Ursula, with her companions, 
sailed for Cologne, where she arrived miraculously without 
the assistance of sailors. Here she had a vision of an angel 
bidding her to repair to Rome, the threshold of the Apostles. 
From Cologne the pilgrims proceeded up the Rhine by boat, 
till they arrived at Basle, where they disembarked and con- 
tinued their journey on foot over the Alps to Italy. At 
length they reached the Tiber, and approached the walls of 
Rome. There the Pope, St. Cyriacus (or Cyprianus), went 
forth with all his clergy in procession to meet them. He 
gave them his blessing, and, lest the maidens should come 
to harm in so wicked a city, he had tents pitched for them 
outside the walls, on the side towards Tivoli. Meanwhile, 
Prince Conon had also come on pilgrimage by a different 
route, and arrived at Rome on the same day as his betrothed. 
He knelt with Ursula at the feet of the Pope, and, being 
baptised, received in exchange the name of Ethereus. 

After a certain time spent in Rome, the holy maidens 
bethought them to return home again. Thereupon, Pope 
Cyriacus decided to accompany them, together with his 
cardinals, archbishops, bishops, patriarchs, and many others 
of his prelates. They crossed the Alps, embarked again at 
Basle, and made their way northward as far as Cologne. 
Now it happened that the army of the Huns was at that 
time besieging the Roman colony, and the pagans fell upon the 
eleven thousand virgins, with the Pope and their other saintly 
companions. Prince Ethereus was one of the first to die ; 
then Cyriacus, the bishops, and the cardinals perished. 
Last of all, the pagans turned upon the virgins, all of whom 



vi. j THE ACADEMY 209 

they slew, save only St. Ursula. Her they carried before 
their king, who, beholding her beauty, would fain have 
wedded her. But Ursula sternly refused the offer of this 
son of Satan ; whereupon the king, seizing his bow, trans- 
fixed her breast with three arrows. Hence her symbol in 
art is an arrow. 

St. Ursula is the patroness of maidens, and especially of 
schoolgirls. There existed at Venice a benevolent institu- 
tion, under her patronage, for the support and education of 
orphan girls, the Scuola di Sant' Ursula (near San 
Giovanni e Paolo). For this Scuola, Carpaccio painted the 
present series of scenes from the life of the patron saint, 
between 1490 and 1495. They are now well reunited in a 
room somewhat resembling their original abode. After 
seeing them, it is well to visit San Giorgio degli Schiavoni, 
where you will find a similar series, also by Carpaccio, from 
the lives of St. George and St. Tryphonius, still arranged in 
their first setting. These pictures, with those at San Rocco, 
will help you to piece out your idea of the splendid char- 
acter of the old Venetian Scuole or charitable guilds. The 
visitor who has seen Bruges will also compare them mentally 
(or still better by means of photographs) with the Memlings 
of St. John's Hospital.] 

This room and the two which follow it have been built in 
the upper floor of the suppressed church of the Carita. 
The St. Ursula series begins to the L. of the door as you 
enter ; unfortunately, not all the pictures have been placed, 
it seems to me, in their proper chronological order in the 
story. 

572. The Ambassadors of the pagan English king arrive 
at the court of the Christian king Maurus to ask for the 
hand of Ursula. To the extreme L. is the loggia or porch 
of the palace, with gentlemen in waiting ; below, a senator 
in a red robe ; in the background, a port like that of Venice. 
In the central portion of the picture, the chief ambassador, 
kneeling, presents his letter to King Maurus in council ; 
behind him, the other ambassadors make their obeisance ; 
in the background, a galley, and Venetian architecture of 



210 THE ACADEMY [vi. 

the early Renaissance. To the extreme R. is a subsequent 
episode : King Maurus conveys the message to his daughter, 
who is counting on her fingers the three conditions under 
which alone she will consent to accept the suit of Conon. 
Notice her neat little bed, and the picture of the Madonna 
on the wall. This daintily simple room has one side taken 
out, as at a theatre. The duenna below with the crutch 
obviously gave the hint for the old woman with the basket 
of eggs in Titian's Presentation in the Temple. Observe 
the classical touch in the medallion of a Caesar on the pillar 
in front of her. 

573. The Ambassadors of the pagan English king leave 
the court of the Christian monarch. A preternaturally busy 
secretary writes the answer with the conditions to Conon. 
Observe the characteristic Venetian decorations of coloured 
marble, the niche over the door, and the architecture in the 
background. 

574. The Ambassadors render their report to the pagan 
king in his own city, the architecture of which, though still 
essentially Venetian, is meant to contrast as barbaric and 
antiquated with that of the Christian king's civilised capital. 
To the extreme R., King Agrippinus, seated, and looking 
fiercely pagan, receives the Ambassadors' report in a little 
octagonal summer-house with exquisite columns of coloured 
marble. Note the wall behind, and the gardens. Outside 
stands a very Venetian crowd, with a balustraded bridge 
like those on the Riva. The central part of the picture is 
occupied by Prince Conon and his knightly attendants ; the 
Prince stands in the exact middle with his hand on his 
heart. All the architectural details are worth close notice. 

575. The Departure of the two Lovers. On the L., 
Conon, with fair hair and a long red robe, takes leave of his 
parents ; in the background is the fantastic architecture of 
the pagan city, the turreted portion to the extreme L. being 
intended to produce a specially barbaric effect. The hill- 
town in the L. background resembles the neighbourhoods of 
Vicenza and Brescia. To the extreme R., St. Ursula takes 
leave of her parents, this Christian leave-taking being care- 



vi.] THE ACADEMY 211 

fully contrasted with the pagan one of Conon. The robes 
of Ursula, her father, and her weeping mother, are all 
beautiful. In the background, the stately Christian city, an 
ideal early Renaissance Venice. A little to the L. of this 
group, near the flagstaff, is a somewhat later episode : 
Conon and his bride, this time somewhat differently dressed, 
meet for embarkation. (Perhaps, however, this scene repre- 
sents Conon landing in Brittany, and received by Ursula ; 
while to the R. they may both be taking leave of Maurus.) 
The shipping, and the other accessories, such as the pontoon 
and the magnificent carpets, deserve close inspection. 

Omit for the moment 576 in the centre. 

*577« Ursula and Conon arrive together on the same day 
at Rome, where they are met in solemn procession by the 
Pope, accompanied by a magnificent retinue of ecclesiastics. 
All the robes here are exquisitely rendered. In the distance 
to the L., the train of eleven thousand virgins winds slowly, 
in single file (as in the Memlings at Bruges), absorbed in 
meditation, across the Campagna, with the Alps in the dis- 
tance. Near them are eleven standards for the eleven 
thousand, and one with a red cross for St. Ursula. Many 
of the principal maidens wear coronets. In the background 
rises the castle of St. Angelo. Do not overlook the portable 
baldacchino and all the other ecclesiastical accessories in 
this fine and fantastic ceremonial picture. 

**578 (which ought to have come much earlier in the 
arrangement, at least if the legend was faithfully followed). 
St. Ursula's Dream, a very lovely picture. The saint lies 
peacefully sleeping in a neat little bed under a simple 
canopy ; to the extreme R., the angel enters. Every detail 
here is delicious, from the flower- pots and flowers in the 
window, to the clogs which the tidy little saint has put off 
by her bedside, and the dainty crown which she has care- 
fully laid on the parapet at the foot of the bed. A virgin 
martyr, but an ideal housewife. 

579. Arrival of St. Ursula at Cologne. On the L., the 
maiden saint is seen in a portentous galley, very difficult to 
navigate, accompanied by the Pope and all his ecclesiastics. 



212 THE ACADEMY [vi. 

Behind, in another galley, some assorted specimens of the 
eleven thousand. A messenger in a boat seems to inform 
the pilgrims (quite needlessly) of the state of the city. To 
the R. is the besieging army of the Huns, most of them in 
frankly anachronistic late fifteenth-century armour. In the 
background, the King of the Huns, himself mounted, directs 
the siege. Beyond him stretch the tents of his followers, and 
then the turreted walls of Cologne manned by the defenders. 
It must, however, be admitted that this is all very make- 
believe warfare. Nobody seems to take it seriously. 

580. The Martyrdom of St. Ursula and the Eleven 
thousand Virgins. In the centre, the King of the Huns, a 
most courtly and knightly gentleman for a pagan savage, 
bends his bow and directs an arrow straight at the heart of 
the kneeling St. Ursula. Behind her are Conon (?) and one 
of the virgins. A little in the background, the good Pope 
receives an arrow-wound and a sword-thrust, and his* tiara 
falls from his dying head. To the extreme L. takes place an 
indiscriminate massacre, in which violent action (a weak 
point with Carpaccio) is only tolerably represented ; one Car- 
dinal in particular, with an arrow in his face, is frankly 
comic. The upper part of the picture is formed by hard 
trees and a landscape background. The courtiers of the 
King of the Huns are chiefly remarkable for the barbaric 
variety and eccentricity of their weapons, in designing which 
Carpaccio's fancy runs riot. To the extreme R. is the Burial 
of the Saint, who is borne on a bier by ecclesiastics into a 
church, attended by sympathisers who seem to be portraits 
of Venetian gentlemen. The kneeling figure at the base is 
doubtless one of the donors. This is the poorest and least 
worthy work of the whole series. Carpaccio here attempts 
a task beyond his powers. 

Now return to 576, opposite, which is really the last of 
the series. It represents the Glorification or Apotheosis of 
St. Ursula. In the centre stands the triumphant saint, 
elevated on a clustered column of palm-branches, symbolical 
of martyrdom, and ringed by red cherubs ; behind her is a 
glory ; around her, a mandorla-shaped group of little winged 




;raph: Brogi 

S. CATHERINE BY CARLO CR1VELLI 

(NOW AT THE BRERA) 

Compare with the S. Catherine in tlie Santa Conversazione by Palma Vecchio, 



Room vii in ; 



VI.] THE ACADEMY 213 

angels ; above, the Eternal Father, much foreshortened, 
stretches His welcoming arms to receive her into bliss im- 
mortal. Below are the companions of her martyrdom and her 
glory, the eleven thousand virgins, two of them holding 
banners, together with the sainted Pope and the ecclesiastics 
who accompanied him. I fail, unfortunately, to discriminate 
Conon. The three portrait-like faces on the L. I take to be 
those of the donors. 

Room XVII. 

Cross the corridor, mount a few steps, and turn to the 
left. 

103 and 105. Carlo Crivelli. Panels with saints. 

51. A Crucifixion, attributed to the workshop of Squar- 
cione, in which Crivelli, Mantegna, the two brothers Bellini, 
Cosimo Tura, and others studied. 

**588. Manteg?ia. St. George and the Dragon, with 
one of his characteristic garlands of fruit and foliage. This 
may be reckoned among the gems of the collection. Ex- 
amine it closely for its splendid workmanship and the delicate 
treatment of its accessories. It is so admirably and minutely 
touched that if you sit opposite it and look at it through an 
opera-glass, which enlarges considerably, it gains rather than 
loses by magnifying. A masterpiece of its master. 

47. Piero del/a Francesco,. St. Jerome and a donor. 

581. Ruined altar-piece by Bartolommeo Vivarini. In 
the centre, a very wooden Nativity, with the usual features 
— shed, star, wattled manger, ox and ass, etc. ; in the back- 
ground an ill-drawn Annunciation to the Shepherds ; on the 
sides, L. and R., Peter and Paul (keys and sword) ; further 
L.j St. John Baptist, St. Andrew, St. Francis with the 
stigmata ; further R., St. Jerome, St. Dominic, and probably 
St. Theodore. 

Also 584 and 585. SS. Magdalen and Barbara, by the 
same artist. 

Between them, 615. Bartolommeo Vivarini. An early 
Madonna and saints, in the old "tabernacle" altar-piece 



214 THE ACADEMY [\i. 

style, from the suppressed church of Sant' Andrea della 
Certosa (the Carthusian monastery). In the centre is a 
lovely enthroned Madonna with a sleeping Child — compare 
with the Cosimo Tura and the Bellini. To the L., St. 
Andrew, the patron of the church, and St. John the Baptist; 
to the R., St. Dominic and St. Peter. 

Each figure is in its own separate niche. There is no co- 
relation of the subject. The intention is to render spiritual 
character and feeling, rather than beauty. It is a picture for 
the simple worshipper, not for the aesthetic connoisseur. 

607. Alvise Vivarini) nephew of Bartolommeo and son 
of Antonio, the last of his school. Madonna enthroned, 
with Franciscan saints ; altar-piece painted for the Fran- 
ciscan church of San Francesco at Treviso. In the centre, 
Our Lady sits enthroned on a lofty pedestal ; her features 
are somewhat insipid. In the foreground stand the four 
great Franciscan saints, from L. to R., as follows : St. Louis 
of Toulouse, St. Antony of Padua, St. Francis, and St. 
Bernardino of Siena. Behind these four Franciscans stand 
the parents of Our Lady, St. Joachim, holding the dove of 
his offering, and St. Anna. The arches at the back and the 
long line of the saints convey faint reminiscences of the 
earlier formal arrangement in niches. This is considered 
Alvise's masterpiece ; it well illustrates the harm done to 
such pictures by seeing them in a gallery, divorced from 
their primitive ecclesiastical surroundings, in which they 
were full of symbolical meaning. The Franciscan saints 
have nervous, fleshless faces, anxiously devotional. The 
pose is hard and stiff, with no flowing grace nor softness of 
outline. Note the peculiarity in gesture, and the tendency 
to ascetic emotion in the severe faces, ashen in complexion 
and lean to emaciation. Yet the sincerity and the sim- 
plicity of the work are refreshing, and there is a charm 
greater than far more competent work often yields. 

72, 73, and 348, all by Catena, who is supposed to have 
worked under Alvise Vivarini, and to have been influenced 
by Giovanni Bellini and Giorgione. There is little evidence 
here of the influence of the last of these painters. 



THE ACADEMY 215 

On the end wall — 

628. *Cosimo Turn of Ferrara. Madonna and Child. 
A characteristic specimen of this harsh but powerful 
Ferrarese-Bolognese master. Note the contrast between 
the hard detail of the figures and the elaborate detail that 
surrounds them. 

606 and 608. Annunciation, by Bernardino Parentino. 
A dull, heavy picture. As usual, the angel L. and Our Lady 
R. The action almost always takes place in a loggia. Our 
Lady's face is already characteristically Venetian. 

618, 619, and 593, Saints, by A /vise Vivarini. Peculiar 
gestures, exaggeration of the nude, and a strange mixture of 
intensity and whimsicality of expression are notes of the 
characteristics of the school of the Vivarini, as distinguished 
from the sunny placid state of well-being which Giovanni 
Bellini was content to paint. The St. Chiara is a remark- 
able figure. An ideal recluse, who has had visions, has 
suffered and has ruled. A certain benignity tempers the 
firm lines of her face. Seldom does the Venetian school 
succeed in expressing such high elevation of character. 

68. Marco Basaiti. Two panels from an altar-piece ; St. 
James with his staff, and St. Anthony Abbot with his Tau- 
shaped cross and bell. Marco Basaiti was a follower of 
Alvise Vivarini. 

*io8. Marco Basaiti. Youthful dead Christ, attended 
by angels. A rare treatment of this subject. 

107. Marco Basaiti. St. Jerome in the Desert, as a 
Penitent — as usual, holding the stone with which he 
hammers his breast. The two great St. Jerome subjects 
are this and St. Jerome in his study as translator of the 
Vulgate. 

*6oo. Boccaccio Boccaccino. A Cremona painter (1495— 
1 5 18). Madonna and Saints; his masterpiece. A little to 
the L., Our Lady holds the Child on her lap ; further L., St. 
Catherine (a most graceful figure, beautifully robed) holds 
out her hand to receive the mystic ring from the hands of 
the infant Christ whose bride she is. On the R., St. Rose, 
holding the palm of her martyrdom. These two female 



216 THE ACADEMY [vi. 

figures are exquisitely and touchingly rendered. To the 
extreme R., St. Peter with his keys, and St. John Baptist 
with his cross of reeds. The background is formed by a 
charming mountain landscape, with a lake and city. 
Observe in this delicious idyllic work how the assemblage 
of saints attendant on the Madonna has ceased to be sym- 
metrical, and lost all memory of the early arrangement in 
rows ; the figures are here thrown into that sort of con- 
certed composition which is known as a " Santa Conversa- 
zione." Yet the treatment is still typical of the fifteenth 
century, and is not affected by the new feeling for light and 
shade. 

Then follows an interesting collection of pictures by Cima 
da Conegliano, a follower of Alvise Vivarini and a pupil of 
Giovanni Bellini. A painter who remained unaffected by 
the new manner, in which things are seen in relation to their 
surrounding atmosphere and according to natural effects of 
light and shade. 

*6i i. Cima. The Incredulity of St. Thomas. An altar- 
piece painted for the Scuola of the Masons in Venice, St. 
Thomas being the recognised patron of the building trades. 
The action takes place in an arcade, from which is seen 
a distant view of Cima's favourite mountains. To the R. 
stands a sainted episcopal figure, usually explained as St. 
Magnus, the holy bishop of Altinum, but more probably St. 
Nicholas, the patron saint of merchants and the middle 
classes. (Compare the figure with the undoubted St. 
Nicholas holding the three balls, in the opposite altar- 
piece by the same artist.) Fine bold outlines ; vivid and 
pure colour ; great and grave religious sincerity. This is 
considered to be Cima's masterpiece. A picture by him 
very like it, but without the St. Nicholas, is in the National 
Gallery in London. 

623. St. Christopher carrying the Child. 

592. *Cima da Conegliano. Tobias and the Angel. Altar- 
piece from the suppressed church of the Misericordia, much 
injured and restored, but still very beautiful. Cima was one 
of the greatest of Giovanni Bellini's pupils, and this may 



vi.] THE ACADEMY 217 

rank even now among his noblest works. In the centre, the 
Archangel Raphael leads the youthful Tobias, who holds 
in his hand the fish which was to cure his father's blind- 
ness. Both figures are extremely graceful. To the L. is 
St. James the Apostle, with his pilgrim's staff; to the R., 
St. Nicholas of Myra, holding the three golden balls which 
are his symbol. Observe in this picture how the attendant 
saints, who in earlier times stood apart under a separate 
canopy of the altar-piece, or, if thrown into one panel, were 
treated as single figures in isolation, now begin to form 
a concerted group, though they do not yet take any part in 
a combined action, as is the case in the later treatment 
known as the Santa Conversazio?ie. (Watch this develop- 
ment hereafter.) Here the saints, though standing in the 
same beautiful landscape background with the central 
figures, are still purely abstract personages, assessors, as 
it were, of the main scene. The superior position of the 
Archangel and Tobias is quaintly shown by elevating them 
on a little mound or hillock. But observe at the same time 
how landscape is now beginning to assert itself. Though 
damaged, this picture is still fine. Good colour through- 
out : excellent draperies. 

603. Citna da Conegliano. Half-length Madonna and 
Child, with St. John and St. Paul ; the latter may always 
be known by his bald head, pointed beard, and sword. 
Behind the Madonna, a curtain, on either side of which 
peeps out a landscape. This type of half-length Madonna, 
with curtain, parapet, and open background, is highly 
characteristic of the Venetian school of the Bellini period. 
Our Lady's features are redolent of the Venetian ideal : 
they may be traced afterwards in Titian and his followers. 
This is an admirable picture, beautifully rendered. 

604. Cima. Deposition from the Cross. The dead 
Saviour is supported by Joseph of Arimathea ; on the other 
side are Our Lady as the Mater Dolorosa, and St. John ; 
at the ends, another Mary and Mary Magdalen. 



218 THE ACADEMY [vi. 

Room XVIII. 

At the end of Room XVII, there is a small room in which 
are hung a number of panel pictures by Giovanni Bellini, 
the first of the great Renaissance painters of Venice, as well 
as examples of his pupils or school. Bellini lived from 1427 
till 1 5 16, and was brother-in-law of Mantegna. His life just 
covers the great developing period of the Renaissance. 

On entering, turn to the left. 

**595« Five little allegories by Giovanni Bellini; prob- 
ably panels from a decorative chest. These dainty and 
charming cameos should be closely examined for their 
exquisite, almost classical, painting. They are masterpieces 
in little. No satisfactory explanation of their subjects has 
yet been offered. 

612. Giovanni Bellini. Madonna with the red cherubs, 
a characteristic and silvery early specimen. The Child is a 
piece of simple naturalism. 

583. Giovanni Bellini, half-length Madonna and Child. 
This picture is in the earliest manner of the great painter, 
still betraying some faint traces of Byzantine influence 
(especially observable in Our Lady's face, head-dress, and 
hands), as well as something derived from the school of the 
Vivarini. As yet, Bellini's art has not succeeded in eman- 
cipating itself from conventional trammels. Compare this 
picture carefully with the great Madonna (by Antonio and 
Giovanni) in the last room we examined, and with the other 
Bellini Madonnas in this Hall. 

Pass the window, on the end wall— 

6 13. Giovanni Bellini. Half-length Madonna and saints. 
To the L., St. Catharine ; to the R., St. Mary Magdalen. The 
figures are lighted from below, being intended for a lofty altar- 
piece. The two women are both types of Venetian beauties. 

**596. Giovanni Bellini. Half-length Madonna and 
Child, known as the Madonna of the Two Trees, also as 
Madonna degli Alberetti — one of the most beautiful which he 
ever painted. Compare it with 594 and the other examples. 
This may be numbered among the loveliest things in the 



vi.] THE ACADEMY 219 

collection. The strong columnar neck and dignified 
matronly character of Our Lady in this characteristic 
Venetian work should be closely observed, and mentally 
contrasted with the girlish ideal Florentine type, as well 
as with the gracious character of the Lombard Madonnas. 
The Child in this picture is extremely charming and sweetly 
infantile. Dated 1487. 

**6io. Giova7ini Bellini. Altar-piece, with Our Lady and 
two saints. This is one of Bellini's finest pictures ; it is 
a typical Venetian half-length Madonna, with curtain and 
parapet. Our Lady's face may be reckoned among the 
loveliest that Bellini ever painted ; the Child is charming 
in his infantine grace. To the L. stands St. Paul with his 
sword, its hilt and scabbard exquisitely enamelled : to the 
R., St. George, in a splendid helmet and glancing armour, 
grasping his lance or pennant with the red cross. These 
two faces are obviously portraits, probably of the donors, 
represented under the guise of their patron saints, for which 
the features of St. Paul, a characteristic Venetian senator 
of his period, are excellently adapted. St. George is less 
happy ; he looks more like a staid lawyer or statesman, 
than the romantic and adventurous knight of the legend 
Admirably drawn, patiently wrought, gloriously coloured. 

On end wall, 87. Head of Christj a fragment from the 
Transfiguration. 

591. Giovarvii Bellini. Full-length Madonna, with sleep- 
ing Child on her knees. This should be compared with 
the Madonna by his father, 582, and with his own early 
work, 583. The graceful drawing of the Child marks a great 
advance in art. The name James Bellinus is on the panel, 
but some critics think this is the work of Alvise Vivarini. 

582. Jacopo Bellini, father of Giovanni and Gentile. Half- 
length Madonna and Child. Compare this rather wooden 
specimen of Jacopo (who was a pupil of the Umbrian Gen- 
tile da Fabriano) with the more distinctly Venetian treat- 
ment of the same subject we have just seen in 583, noticing 
how far Giovanni has been influenced in his conception of 
Our Lady by the mosaics of St. Mark's. 



220 THE ACADEMY [vi. 

On the upper line — 

594. Giovanni Bellini. Half-length Madonna and Child 
the latter standing (as often) on a parapet ; landscape back- 
ground. Probably an early work. Compare this with the 
other examples. 

Two narrow rooms open out of Sala XVII, parallel with 
it. Enter from the further end of Sala XVII. 

On the end wall, 314, Titian. John the Baptist. 

245. Titian. Portrait of Jacopo Soranzo, in magnificent 
robes. 

95. Sebastia?io del Piombo. The Visitation. 

24 1 and 230. Portraits by Tintoretto. 

In the second narrow room — 

244* 233, 234, 236, 240, 228, 237, form a remarkable 
series of portraits of Venetian Doges and Statesmen, by 
Tintoretto. We are reminded of the State which they served 
rather than of the personality of the individual. In every 
face we see the policy of "the not too much" ; and that 
custom and precedent has destroyed initiative. And yet 
how ably such men kept up the forms of a great tradition 
long after its vitality was gone ! 

298. Attributed to Giorgione. A small portrait. 

305. Pordenone. Portrait of a woman. 

Room XX. 

Hall of the Presentation. 

This fine hall was originally the Albergo (guest-chamber 
or public reception room) of the Fraternity. It still retains 
its magnificent decorations, and the pictures it contains were 
originally painted for the very places they now occupy 
The gorgeous carved and gilded wooden roof represents 
Christ in Benediction, surrounded by the four Apostles with 
their symbols. 

Take a seat near the staircase, and examine first, 
**625. Antonio Vivarini da Murano and Giovaimi 
AlamannOy Our Lady and Child with the Doctors of the 
Church (1445). This glorious work is the finest surviving 



VI.] THE ACADEMY 221 

specimen of the early Venetian school. In the centre, on a 
raised dais, sits Our Lady, enthroned, with the Child erect 
on her knees. The placid though somewhat insipid features 
of both show the influence of the Cologne school, in which 
it is probable that Giovanni (the German) received his art- 
education. The soft and pensive early German tinge in 
Our Lady's face helped to form the later Venetian type of 
Madonna. The closed garden in which she is seated, as 
well as its beautiful architectural framework and throne, also 
recall the German Paradise-pictures. Four angels hold a 
canopy over the Madonna's head. To the L. stand two of 
the Latin Doctors of the Church ; St. Jerome, in his Car- 
dinal's hat and robe, holds the church in one hand, and his 
translation of the Scriptures (the Vulgate) in the other; with 
St. Gregory the Pope, in gorgeous canonicals, at whose ear 
the Holy Ghost, as a dove, whispers. To the R. are the 
other two Doctors, St. Ambrose of Milan, grasping the 
scourge, symbolical of his act in repelling the Emperor 
Theodosius from the gates of the church at Milan after the 
massacre at Thessalonica ; and St. Augustine, bearing his 
book De Civitate Dei. Both these are habited in their vest- 
ments as bishops. You cannot sit too long before this noble 
and beautiful picture, supreme in its own kind : examine 
every part of its decorative work carefully. Alike in colour 
and in sentiment it forms the foundation for all later 
Venetian painting. 

Over the entrance doorway *(6i6), Titiarts Presentation 
in the Temple, a picture painted for the place it now occu- 
pies, and with the stonework in its right-hand corner form- 
ing an apparent continuation of the doorway beneath it. It 
was long removed from this spot, and had the two breaks 
below filled up with canvas ; but it has now, to its great 
advantage, been restored by the authorities to its original 
position. It treats its subject somewhat cavalierly, as a 
mere excuse for voluptuous painting, fine colour, and good 
architectural perspective. St. Joachim, in a yellow robe, 
with his back turned to the spectator, near the centre of the 
picture (just behind the little jumping dog), lays his hand on 



222 THE ACADEMY [vi. 

St. Anne's shoulder. These are the parents of the little 
Virgin, and they have brought her to the Temple to present 
her to the Lord. Our Lady herself, contrary to their ex- 
pectations, mounts the steps alone, and fearlessly halts near 
the middle. At the top, the High Priest opens his arms to 
receive her, attended by other priests. Below, near the foot 
of the stairs, spectators, who are mere sumptuous portraits 
of handsome Venetian ladies, observe her action with praise 
and admiration. To the L. stand senators and nobles, 
obviously portraits, and clearly more interesting to Titian 
than the sacred personages. The background is an ex- 
cellent landscape in Titian's own country of Cadore. The 
" celebrated " old woman with the basket of eggs in the 
centre foreground is undoubtedly suggested by a similar 
figure in a picture by Carpaccio. This work is, of course, 
much later in date than those we have hitherto been 
examining, and I merely mention it here for local con- 
venience. Its Renaissance architecture and its free Renais- 
sance feeling and composition may be instructively contrasted 
with the fine early decorative arrangement of 625. I star 
it rather out of deference to universal opinion than from any 
personal liking for its tawdry sentiment. 

Opposite the Presentation on the wall of the staircase, 
621, 621a, 62 id, and 621c, four anconas painted by Barto- 
lommeo Vivarini and his school. They represent Madonna 
and Child between St. Francis and St. Theodore ; The 
Nativity, with St. Jerome and St. Louis ; St. Sebastian 
between St. John the Baptist and St. Anthony Abbot ; St. 
Lawrence between St. John the Baptist and St. Antony 
of Padua. 

Return often to the Academy, and remember always that 
many admirable pictures are omitted here for want of space. 
Those who desire more information about all these works 
can use Karl Karoly's excellent Guide to The Pictures of 
Venice^ which gives a bewildering variety of discordant 
opinions about each work from all the recognised critical 
authorities. 



VII 

THE DOGE'S PALACE 

Interior 

|~ T N the early part of the fifteenth century Gentile da 
Fabriano and Vittore Pisano were invited to Venice by 
the signory in order to decorate the interior of the Doge's 
Palace, at an age when native artistic talent was still 
deficient in the lagoons. They must no doubt have 
produced some of their finest works in this building. At 
the close of the fifteenth century, again, when the great 
native school of the Bellini had developed its peculiar local 
excellences, the chief painters of that golden age were 
further commissioned to adorn with paintings the new 
portions of the Palace, recently completed. We cannot 
doubt that many of the noblest creations of Giovanni and 
Gentile Bellini, Cima, Catena, Bissolo, and their con- 
temporaries were painted for this purpose ; while some of 
Titian's most splendid works also decorated the walls of 
the State apartments. Unfortunately, however, almost all 
these once famous masterpieces perished in the terrible fire 
of 1574, while the later fire of 1577 destroyed the remainder. 
We are thus left with mere scattered fragments of the 
artistic works produced by the finest age of Venetian 
painting. 

After the great fires, however, the halls were restored 
with fitting magnificence, and decorated anew with a series 
of sumptuous paintings, mainly by Tintoretto, Paolo 
Veronese, and Palma the younger, who are here seen 
to the best advantage. These works are too numerous (and 
often too similar) for description in full, while many of them, 

223 



224 THE DOGES PALACE [vn. 

being classical in subject or presenting slight variants on 
now familiar themes, require comparatively little explana- 
tion. Hand-catalogues are also supplied by the authorities 
in all the rooms, and by their aid the visitor can identify for 
himself the various subjects. I therefore limit myself for 
the most part in this book to describing the following three 
sets of compositions : — 

(i) The great masterpieces ; 

(2) The pictures specially requiring explanation ; and, 

(3) Those which call for brief notes on peculiar variants 
of the customary themes. 

Many of the pictures, however, which I do not notice are 
thoroughly deserving of attentive study by those whose time 
suffices for the purpose. 

Remember that the pictures in the Doge's Palace thus 
represent only the last great age of Venetian painting.] 

The Palace is open daily from 9 to 3 ; admission, 1.20 c. 
per person. It is also open/ra? on Sundays and public 
holidays, from 10 to 2 ; but as the order in which the rooms 
must be visited is then altered, and no hand-catalogues are 
supplied, I do 7iot advise you to sjee it on a free day. Pay like 
a man, and see the pictures properly in the right succession. 

The entrance is at the top of the Scala del Giganti ; 
tickets are taken in the loggia on the first floor. Thence 
you mount the steps and pass above the Principal Floor to 
the highest story, which (owing to the peculiar construction 
of the lower ranges) contains most of the chief reception 
rooms of the Palace. (The lower floors are mainly occupied 
by the loggia ; no doubt the jealous Venetian oligarchy pur- 
posely raised itself to this safe height above popular spying.) 
We ascend on week-days by the- Scala dOro, or Golden 
Stairs, so called from its gilt and painted ceiling ; erected by 
Sansovino, 1556. Up this staircase, in the days of the 
Republic, only those nobles whose names were written in the 
Libro d'Oro were permitted to pass. 

At the top of the steps we enter first a little ante-room 
known as the 



vit.J THE DOGES PALACE 225 

Atrio Quadrato, 

which is practically the main vestibule of the Palace. Its 
walls are hung with good portraits of senators, by Tintoretto. 
The ceiling, also by Tintoretto, represents Doge Lorenzo 
Priuli receiving the sword of office from the hands of Justice. 
Above, in clouds, St. Mark is enthroned as representative of 
Venice ; below, in presence of the personified, crowned and 
seated Venezia, Justice, holding her balance, presents the 
sword to the aged Doge, who wears his richly-jewelled robe 
and cap of office. 
A door to the L. admits to the 

Sala delle Quattro Porte, 
so called from its four entrances. This was the hall through 
which ambassadors to the Republic were conducted to the 
waiting-room. On the entrance wall, in the centre, is a 
famous picture by Titian, known as the *Fede ; all these 
pictures, however, though commonly called by such sacred 
names, are best treated as portraits of Doges, represented in 
the act of adoring some saint or Madonna. The Doge in 
this instance is Antonio Grimani (1521-1523); he kneels, 
in armour, covered by a rich robe, on a footstool. He has 
removed his cap of office, but retains the ugly white linen 
skull-cap beneath it. A page by his side holds the jewelled 
ducal crown. To the R. are halberdiers in attendance, 
beside a rich red curtain. The figure before which Grimani 
kneels is not a saint, but a personification of Faith, holding 
the cross and cup and surrounded by a luminous glory of 
cherubs. Faith is very theatrical, almost vulgar : she fore- 
shadows the rococo. To the L., St. Mark with his lion 
represents Venice ; the town itself, as it existed in Grimani's 
time, is seen in the background. This is the whole of Titian's 
picture, painted for another apartment ; having been re- 
moved later to this room, and to a wall too large for it, the 
additional figures at either end were added by his nephew, 
Marco Vecelli. The whole work is a fine, brilliantly- 
coloured, vigorous., unpoetic picture. 

Q 



226 THE DOGE'S PALACE [vn. 

R. of the door, Doge Marino Grimani kneeling before the 
Virgin and Child, by Giovanni Contarini, a pupil of Titian's. 
St. Mark directs the Doge's gaze to Our Lady and the Child ; 
on the R. is St. Sebastian ; in the centre background, 
Grimani's personal patron, Santa Marina. 

The corresponding picture to the L. represents the re- 
conquest of Verona by Venice from the Duke of Milan in 
1439, also by Contarini ; feeble. 

The wall opposite this is covered by three canvases of 
less artistic interest, representing Venice as the host and 
arbiter of foreign nations. L., the ambassadors of Nurem- 
berg accept the arbitration of the Doge and Senate on their 
law of apprenticeship, by Gabriele Caliari. 

Centre, Henry III of France is hospitably received in 
state at Venice, by Andrea Vicentino ; the picture shows the 
triumphal arch erected for the occasion. 

R., the Persian ambassadors bring presents of rich 
oriental fabrics from the Shah to Doge Marino Grimani, in 
1603, by Carletto Caliari. 

The ceiling is painted by Tintoretto, but has been ruined 
by repainting. Its central panel represents Jupiter bestow- 
ing on Venice the sovereignty of the sea ; in the background 
a riotous chorus of gods. Note the appearance here of 
pagan mythology. 

The door opposite to that by which you entered leads to the 



with a florid late Renaissance mantelpiece. Here ambas- 
sadors sat to await their audience. This room is chiefly 
decorated with mythological pictures, representing the 
wealth, power, and arts of later Venice. 

L. of the door by which you enter, Tintoretto, ^Mercury 
with the Graces — the commerce and civilisation of Venice ; 
noble specimens of nude figures, admirably rendered. 

Opposite this **Bacchus and Ariadne, also by Tintoretto. 
Ariadne, deserted in Naxos by Theseus, is discovered by 
Bacchus, wreathed in vine leaves : Venus crowns her with 
the stars of her constellation. 



vil] THE DOGE'S PALACE 227 

Many of Tintoretto's pictures are outlines of a mood, notes 
of an emotion stimulated by some inspiration and carried no 
further. That is not the case here. The human form is 
elaborated with loving care. Bacchus is the mystical power 
of nature, the soul of that tonic strength which the Greeks 
found in the vine and in all that springs from the warmth of 
the sun and the freshness of the rain. He is the god who 
wanders over the world giving to men the secret of life. In 
his union with the ideal beauty of Ariadne there is the 
rhythmical perfection of life and nature. 

Beyond the door, ^Minerva repelling Mars, by Tintoretto 
— wise counsel saves Venice from war : to the L., Peace 
brings plenty to Venice. 

Wall opposite the windows, Paolo Veronese, *Europa 
carried off by Jupiter, in the guise of a bull ; one of Paolo's 
most famous and beautiful pictures, yet with germs of deca- 
dence. 

The dark canvas beside this last represents Jacob's return 
from Laban, by Leandro Bassano. These two pictures were 
not painted for the places they occupy : intrusive works. 

Between this and the door of entrance, the Forge of 
Vulcan, by Tintoretto, representing the handicrafts of 
Venice : murky and gloomy. 

The next door leads to the 

Sala del Collegio. 

This was the hall in which ambassadors were received 
by the Doge, sitting on a throne of state on the dais at its 
further end : beside him sat the signory. 

Over the door of entrance, Tintoretto, ^portrait of Doge 
Andrea Gritti. To the L. stands the Doge, in his cap and 
robe of office, admirably painted. At his feet, angels typify 
peace and plenty. St. Mark, holding his Gospel, directs the 
Doge's look towards the Virgin. On a high throne to the 
R. sits Our Lady with the Child, a graceful and gracious 
figure. Around her spreads a luminous halo of cherubs, 
still slightly mandorla-shaped. On the R. are Franciscan 
saints (representative of the order which Gritti specially 



228 THE DOGE'S PALACE [vn. 

affected), St. Bernardino of Siena, with his glowing I.H.S., 
and St. Louis of Toulouse. The centre of the picture is 
occupied by a youthful martyr, probably St. Marina, bearing 
a palm, and presenting one of the Doge's children to Our 
Lady. (Padua was taken on St. Marina's day.) 

Over the door to the L. of this, Tintoretto, commonly 
though absurdly known as the "Marriage of St. Catherine" ; 
^portrait of Doge Francesco Donato, who is presented by 
St. Mark, bearing his Gospel. Behind him, angels (or 
rather virtues, Prudence and Temperance) bearing plenty 
to Venice. Below, the Doge's personal patron, St. Francis. 
The L. of the picture is occupied by Our Lady and the 
Child, the latter in the act of placing a ring on the finger 
of *St. Catherine of Alexandria, crowned and holding her 
wheel. The Doge thus shows his devotion to Our Lady 
and to the patron saint of the Venetian territory. Back- 
ground of the lagoon. 

The centre of the wall is occupied by another Tintoretto, 
Doge Nicolo da Ponte kneeling before Our Lady. The 
Doge is introduced as usual by his official patron, St. Mark. 
Beside him stands Nicolo's personal patron, Saint Nicolas, 
over whose head angels hold the bishop's mitre. The Most 
Serene Prince is engaged in adoring a heavenly group 
composed of *Our Lady and the Child (one of Tintoretto's 
most charming Madonnas), St. Antony with his crutch and 
bell, and St. Joseph. In the background, Venice. All these 
pictures are very characteristic portraits of Doges with the 
special objects of their adoration. We have now travelled 
a far cry indeed from the primitive little figure of the kneel- 
ing donor, so common in early Venetian altar-pieces. 

The rest of this wall is filled by a Tintoretto : portrait of 
Doge Alvise Mocenigo adoring the Saviour, who appears in 
clouds of luminous glory to the L. of the picture. Beneath 
him an angel. St. Mark introduces the kneeling Doge. 
The right-hand side of the picture is occupied by two 
brothers of the Doge, in prayer with their patrons, St. 
Nicolas and St. Andrew. Behind them are St. John the 
Baptist and St. Louis of Toulouse (Doge Alvise's personal 



vii.] THE DOGES PALACE 229 

patron), with a long perspective of the Libreria Vecchia and 
the Campanile. 

Over the throne, which occupies the centre of the dais, 
^portrait of Doge Sebastiano Venier, rendering thanks to 
the Saviour for the victory of Lepanto (in which he took 
part), by Paolo Veronese. The Doge is introduced by St. 
Mark and (I think) St. Justina of Padua (on whose day the 
battle was fought). Behind him, another saint, perhaps St. 
Catharine, holds his ducal crown ; pages support his robe 
and helmet. To the L. kneels Faith, with the symbolical 
cup. Beyond her we catch a glimpse of the battle of 
Lepanto, which is here votively commemorated. Behind the 
Doge stands the heroic Agostino Barbarigo, the real con- 
queror (killed in the battle), holding the consecrated banner 
of St. George. In clouds we see the Saviour, bearing the 
crystal globe, giving His benediction, and visibly ordering 
the affairs of the universe. The figures in painted niches at 
the sides are the Doge's two patrons, St. Justina (his lucky 
day) and St. Sebastian (his name-saint). 

The rich ceiling is entirely painted by Paolo Veronese. 
In its centre oval is Faith; over the dais, ^Venice enthroned 
on a globe, attended by Peace and Justice. 

Renaissance mantelpiece. 

The door here gives access to the 

Sala del Senato, 

still fitted up with the Doge's throne, stalls for the Procura- 
tors, and the seat of the Senators. Its decorations, less rich, 
are mainly by Palma the younger. 

End wall, opposite the throne, ^portraits of Doges 
Lorenzo and Girolamo Priuli, brothers who successively 
held the dukedom, by Palma the younger. To the R. kneels 
Girolamo, attended by his namesake St. Jerome, with his 
lion and his translation of the Vulgate. To the L. is Lorenzo 
with his namesake St. Lawrence. (The tomb of these two 
Doges, similarly attended by their two patrons, covers a wall 
in San Salvatore, and may be profitably visited in connection 
with this picture.) Above, in clouds, a feeble figure of Christ, 



2 3 o THE DOGE'S PALACE [vn. 

attended by St. Mark and the Blessed Virgin. This is a 
good Palma, "but far inferior to the Tintorettos and 
Veroneses. 

Window wall, San Lorenzo Giustiniani elected as first 
Patriarch of Venice in 145 1, by Titian's nephew, Marco 
Vecelli. 

Wall opposite this, to the L., portrait of Doge Pietro 
Loredan, by Tintoretto. L., his patron, St. Peter; R., St. 
Louis of Toulouse. Above, L., Our Lady, in clouds, as the 
Madonna of the Immaculate Conception, surrounded with" 
stars and without the Infant : this new form of Virgin was. 
then the most popular embodiment of the Madonna : R., 
St. Mark with his lion. Background of St. Mark's, the 
Campanile, the Clock Tower, etc. 

Over the door, a picture by Palma the younger, symbolical 
of the resistance to the League of Cambrai, formed by the 
European Powers to crush Venice. In the centre, Doge 
Leonardo Loredan, crowned by angels. To the L., Venice, 
with the lion of St. Mark and the sword of Justice, eagerly 
attacking Europe on a bull. Europe bears a shield blazoned 
with the various arms of the allied States. To the L., 
allegorical figures bring corn and plenty to Venice ; the 
length of her purse makes her capable of withstanding 
united Europe. 

To the R. of this, portrait of Doge Pasquale Cicogna, by 
Palma the younger. The Doge kneels before the risen 
Saviour, to whom he is introduced by St. Mark, though, 
oddly enough, he is looking away towards the allegorical 
figure representing, I believe, Crete, and holding a labyrinth 
as symbol. (Cicogna had been governor of the island.) To 
the R., Faith ; to the L., Peace and Justice, embracing, with 
the olive branch and scales. Very emblematic. 

The last picture on this wall is a portrait of Doge 
Francesco Venier, by Palma the younger. It shows the last 
stage in the de-Christianisation of these Doges' portraits. 
Note that the Doge stands no longer before Our Lady or a 
saint, but before enthroned Venice, to whom he presents the 
various cities of which he has been governor, typified by 



VII.] THE DOGE'S PALACE 231 

beautiful female attendants. Above, on the R., are St. Mark, 
and the Doge's personal patron, St. Francis. 

Over the throne, ^portraits of two Doges, by Tintoretto. 
To the L. kneels Doge Marc' Antonio Trevisano, accom- 
panied by his patron, St. Antony the Abbot, with his crutch 
and bell. Close by, to the L., is the wounded St. Sebastian, 
a precaution against plague. To the R. kneels Doge Pietro 
Lando, accompanied by St. Mark and by his own patron, 
St. Peter Martyr, near whom stands his spiritual father, 
St. Dominic, with the lily. The central, or spiritual portion 
of the picture is occupied by a fine Pieta, the dead Christ 
supported by angels : the St. Mark and St. John to the L. 
appear to be writing their Gospel accounts of the Cruci- 
fixion. 

Of the numerous pictures in the magnificent painted 
ceiling, the most important is the central panel, by Tinto- 
retto, representing Venice enthroned among the gods as 
Queen of the Sea, with Tritons and Nereids rising from 
below and bearing their gifts from the ocean. Careful ex- 
amination of this fine and sweeping but confused work will 
bring out many hidden allegorical meanings. 

The door to the R. of the throne gives access to the 



Antichiesetta, or Vestibule of the Doge's 
Private Oratory. 

Of the pictures which this small apartment contains, only 
two or three need here be noticed. Opposite the door 
by which you enter, ^Tintoretto, the Princess and the 
Dragon. This is clearly an allegorical work, the meaning 
of which I have never succeeded in satisfactorily deciphering. 
St. George, in armour, has dismounted from his horse ; the 
Princess is bestriding the conquered beast ; to the R. is a 
handsome young bishop, whom I take for St. Louis of 
Toulouse. The picture must cover some political fact (like 
that which represents the League of Cambrai) ; but I must 
leave the solution of this difficult problem to the ingenuity 
of my readers. Over the door by which you entered, two 



232 THE DOGES PALACE [vii. 

memorial magisterial saints, St. Jerome and St. Andrew, by 
Tintoretto. 

Most of the other pictures in this room are paintings by 
Rizzi, designs for the mosaics which now adorn the facade of 
St. Mark's. You will recognise their subjects. 

We enter next the 

Chiesetta, or Private Oratory of the 
Doges, 

where mass was said daily by the Ducal chaplain. 

The altar=piece is formed by a sculptured Madonna and 
Child, by Sansovino, in a Renaissance niche, over which are 
placed the arms of Doge Pasquale Cicogna, a crane (the 
meaning of his name in Italian), with the ducal cap above 
it. Of the pictures which it contains I will only notice four 
early Madonnas, more or less of the school of Bellini, none 
of them of high merit ; and, on the L. wall, near the altar, 
a Pieta, by Paris Bordone, chiefly noticeable for the uncon- 
ventional and unsymmetrical arrangement of the mourning 
angels. Near this is a harsh early Renaissance Nether- 
landish picture (by Mostaert ?) of Christ bound to the 
column. 

Return now through the Sala del Senato and the Sala 
delle Quattro Porte, and enter, through a little anteroom, 
the 

Sala del Consiglio dei Dieci. 

The Council of Ten, the Venetian " Star Chamber," sat in 
this apartment. It was armed with summary administrative- 
judicial powers. The pictures in this fine hall are for the 
most part late in date and inferior in merit. They represent 
episodes (more or less real) in the past history of Venice, 
supposed to reflect special glory upon the Republic. 

Wall of entrance, L. and F. Bassano, a huge and some- 
what confused canvas representing Pope Alexander III 
coming forth to meet Doge Sebastiano Ziani on his return 
from his victory over Frederic Barbarossa, in the war which 
Venice undertook against the Emperor in defence of the 



vil] THE DOGE'S PALACE 233 

fugitive Pope. The Doge in armour, enveloped in an ample 
robe of state, stands near the centre of the picture, his 
mantle and cap borne by pages. The proscribed Pope, 
under a portable canopy, welcomes his champion, sur- 
rounded by cardinals, bishops, and other ecclesiastics. The 
Bassani, like other Venetians of their age, envisage the 
scene as though it took place with the arms and costume of 
their own period. 

Opposite this, Marco Vecelli (Titian's nephew), the 
Peace of Bologna, between Pope Clement VII and the 
Emperor Charles V, in 1529. This is a self-explanatory 
picture, of a fine ceremonial character, with excellent por- 
traits, and a stately somewhat formal arrangement of the 
component personages. 

The end wall is occupied by a dark and confused 
Adoration of the Magi, by Aliense, a feeble follower of 
Tintoretto, who has sedulously acquired the master's faults 
without his conspicuous merits. 

The ceiling is by Veronese and his followers, typical of 
the glory of Venice. The best compartment is the one just 
above the Pope and Emperor's head ; it represents wealth 
showered down into the lap of Venice. The figure of an old 
man, with his hand on his chin (in the compartment by the 
corner between the Magi and Pope Alexander III), is 
by Veronese. 

The next room is the 

Sala della Bussola, 
with uninteresting pictures, chiefly of military operations — 
taking of Brescia, Bergamo, etc., confused and unsatis- 
factory. The Doge opposite the windows is Leonardo 
Donato, by Marco Vecelli. 
The little room to the R. of this last picture is the 

Stanza dei Tre Capi del Consiglio. 
These were the inner circle of the Ten, a cabinet within a 
cabinet. L. of the entrance door, Catena, Doge Leonardo 
Loredan adoring Our Lady ; a picture of the earlier type, 



234 THE DOGES PALACE [vn. 

where the Doge's portrait is still duly subordinate to the 
sacred subject : he is introduced to Our Lady by St. Mark, 
who is balanced by St. John the Baptist ; a good picture in 
a hard, dry, early manner. 

Opposite to it, Bonifazio, St. Christopher bearing the infant 
Christ, between St. John the Baptist and St. John the 
Evangelist. This is a magistracy picture, bearing the arms 
of the three donors, whose surnames are thus indicated, 
while their Christian names are allusively given by their 
patrons. 

The central panel of the ceiling is by Veronese ; it 
represents the Virtues driving away the Vices. 

Return to the hall last visited (della Bussola), and descend 
the staircase known as the Scala dei Censori, to the 
Principal Floor of the Palace. 

The vast room to the L. at the bottom of this staircase is 
the 

Sala del Maggior Consiglio, 

which forms the greater part of tbe South Front of the 
Palace. This immense chamber was built for the Council 
of Nobles, the most popular and sovereign assembly in the 
closely oligarchial Venetian constitution, for whose sake 
mainly the existing building was erected. Every adult man 
whose name was inscribed in the Libro d'Oro belonged to it 
by right of birth. 

Before you begin the examination of the pictures in de- 
tail, look well first at the great hall itself, with its palatial 
decorations. Also, go out on to the South Balcony, which 
you have already seen from the outside, both in order to 
orient yourself, and for the sake of the beautiful *view 
over the lagoon and the island of San Giorgio, as well as 
the Giudecca, the Salute, and the tapering point by the 
Dogana. This balcony likewise affords the best front view 
of the lion of St. Mark on the granite column, with his 
fore paws placed on the Gospel : well seen with an opera- 
glass. Examine here also the detail of the window and its 
decorations. 

Re-enter the hall. The whole of the end wall above the 



vii.] THE DOGES PALACE 235 

Doge's throne is entirely occupied by Tintoretto's gigantic 
picture, **Paradise (proudly pointed to by the guides as 
"the largest oil-painting in the world"). In Italian art 
there are two supreme attempts to give form to millennial 
vision, the one in the Divine Comedy, the other in the 
Ducal Palace. In the closing cantos of "Paradise" Dante 
has described the Church triumphant with an imaginative 
power that has given form to subsequent thought. 

In the Ducal Palace, Tintoretto has painted the Circle 
of Eternity, so that we gain some sense of the vastness 
of his theme, although we miss the "alta fantasia" of the 
mediaeval poet. Dante tried to lift human capacity towards 
the central light. Tintoretto did not trouble himself with 
theories physical or metaphysical, everything is conditioned 
in time and space, all is materially solid as on earth, the 
ecstasy and joy of the Empyrean has yet to be realised. 
The general design follows the mediaeval conception of 
circle beyond circle, having their common centre in Christ, 
who rests on the Cross of the Resurrection ; opposite to him 
Madonna kneels in adoration, her head encircled by seven 
stars ; between Christ and Madonna is the Dove of the 
Holy Spirit. Round this group are the hierarchies ot 
angels ; the Seraphim have flaming hearts, Cherubim carry 
books, the Thrones have scales, the Dominations bear 
crowns, the Virtues sceptres, the Powers swords, the Prin- 
cipalities globes ; of the Archangels, Gabriel to the spec- 
tator's left has a lily, Michael to the spectator's right scales, 
while Raphael, beneath the central group, folds his hands 
in prayer. In the same circle as Raphael are the four 
Evangelists. 

To the left there are groups from the Old Testament : 
Noah with the ark, Moses with the tables of the Law, 
David with a harp, and perhaps Solomon ; slightly above 
these stands St. John the Baptist. To the extreme left 
of the picture are Christian saints and members of the 
Monastic orders — St. Barbara, St. Rocco, St. Catherine, 
SS. Francis, Antony of Padua, and Dominic, etc. 

To the right of the Evangelists there are figures of Adam 



236 THE DOGE'S PALACE [vn. 

and Eve, groups of Apostles, of Latin Fathers, SS. Paul and 
Antony, and to the extreme right Mary Magdalen. The 
figures are said to number about five hundred. Throughout 
there is hardly either movement or gesture. 

Tintoretto was about seventy years old when the picture 
was painted. The detail is apt to be treated in summary 
method, the colour is dark and heavy, flesh tints are a dull 
grey ; it is only occasionally that a crimson drapery lightens 
up the sombre mass ; it is notable that yellow and scarlet 
are hardly used. Some relief, however, is gained by the 
background of light blue filled with dim forms, the vast 
crowd of the universal Church. 

The general effect is not reached by the elevation of 
individual types, nor by grandeur in the design of forms. 
Some of the figures, such, for instance, as that of St. Paul, 
are almost grotesque ; in other cases (St. Luke) the features 
are hardly more than blotted in, but these things do not 
touch the core of the matter. In front of the picture it is 
not detail that we notice. As the eye moves across the vast 
panorama there grows up in the mind an extraordinary sense 
of the illimitable ; it is as if we shared in the vision after the 
opening of the seventh seal, when there was silence, so that 
the prayers of the saints might rise up as the smoke of 
incense. 

The other walls of this room are occupied, above, by 
mediocre portraits of all the Doges, in many cases either 
imaginary or modernised from early representations ; and, 
below, by two series of pseudo-historical works, representing 
somewhat imaginary episodes in the history of Venice, from 
the point of view in which the later Venetians desired to see 
them. These works are artistically of inferior merit, and I 
will merely give in brief the names of their subjects. 

The wall towards the Lagoon contains the story of the 
war undertaken by Venice against Frederic Barbarossa, in 
defence of Pope Alexander III. 

(i) Beginning just to the R. of the Paradise: School of 
Paolo Veronese. The Doge Ziani receives the fugitive Pope 
Alexander 1 1 1 at the convent of La Carita. 



vil] THE DOGES PALACE 237 

(2) School of Paolo Veronese. Venice and the Pope send 
ambassadors to Frederic Barbarossa : the ambassadors are 
seen departing from Parma on their way to the Emperor's 
court at Pavia. 

Above a window (3), L. Bassano. The Pope gives the 
Doge a consecrated candle. 

(4) Tintoretto. The ambassadors before Barbarossa, who 
refuses to acknowledge Alexander III as Pope. 

(5) F. Bassano. The Pope presents the Doge with a con- 
secrated sword. The chief interest of this crowded picture 
lies in the fact that it well and accurately depicts the Venice 
of Bassands own time, with groups of ladies in the loggia of 
the Doge's palace. It is thus useful as an historical docu- 
ment, not for the age it pretends to represent, but for the age 
in which it was painted. This is more or less true of all the 
other pictures in the series. 

Above a window (6), Fiammingo. The Doge sets out for 
war, with the Pope's blessing. 

(7) Tintoretto the younger (a very minor painter : do not 
confuse him with his father). The Battle of Salvore, in which 
the Venetians, after a fierce struggle, conquered the Imperi- 
alists, and took prisoner the Emperor's son Otho. As a 
matter of fact this famous battle is imaginary — one of the 
pious patriotic frauds of later Venetian historians. 

Over a door (8), Andrea Vicentino. The Doge brings 
back to the Pope the conquered Otho. 

(9) Palma the younger. The Pope sends Otho to his 
father to induce him to recognise Alexander's claim to the 
Papacy. 

(10) Zucchero. The Emperor Frederic Barbarossa kneels 
in submission before the Pope. The episode is said to have 
taken place in the atrium of St. Mark's — a legendary tale 
made much of in later Venetian history. Venice as a 
Republic was always opposed to the Imperial claims, and 
this half-apocryphal story of Barbarossa's humiliation is 
a picturesque embodimeut of the Guelph theory of Italian 
freedom against the autocratic pretensions of the Franconian 
Emperors. 



238 THE DOGES PALACE [vn. 

Over a door (n), Gamberato. The Doge escorts the 
Pope and the Emperor to Ancona, on their way to Rome. 

End wall (12), Giulio dal Moro. The Pope presents 
consecrated banners to the Doge in the church of St. John 
Lateran at Rome. 

Though these works are of relatively little interest, from 
an artistic point of view, they deserve notice as an embodi- 
ment of the same type of popular ideas of past events as 
those represented in English history by the story of Alfred 
burning the cakes or of Canute and his courtiers. More 
still : they influenced and coloured thought in later 
Venice. 

(13) A picture by Paolo Veronese representing one of the 
other heroic exploits of Venice in the War of Chioggia, in 
which she overcame the Genoese, and made herself finally 
mistress of the Mediterranean. Its subject is the return of 
Doge Andrea Contarini after his victory at Chioggia in 
1380. 

(14) Doge Enrico Dandolo crowning Baldwin the 
Emperor of Constantinople in 1204, by Aliense. 

The series on the R. wall represents, in the same manner, 
the popular Venetian story of the part borne by Doge Enrico 
Dandolo in the great fourth Crusade, and in the conquest of 
Constantinople. 

Begin once more near Tintoretto's Paradise : — 

(1) Giovanni Le Clerc. Doge Enrico Dandolo, en- 
throned in St. Mark's, concludes an alliance with the 
Crusaders in 1201. The Republic was the only Power 
which could furnish the necessary ships for transporting 
so large a body of men by sea. It was thus this Crusade 
which above all else established the supremacy of Venice 
in the East. 

(2) Andrea Vicentino. The French and Venetian 
Crusaders, by a mean bargain, besiege Zara, on the 
Dalmatian coast, on their way to the East. 

(3) Tintoretto the younger. The Surrender of Zara. 

(4) Andrea Vicentino. Alexis, son of the dethroned 
Greek Emperor Isaac, asks the aid of Venice for his father, 



vil] THE DOGES PALACE 239 

thus affording an excuse for the coming conquest of Con- 
stantinople by the Franks and Venetians. 

(5) Palma the younger. The Franks and Venetians 
conquer Constantinople, 1203. This is the first conquest, 
when Isaac was restored to the throne on condition of pay- 
ing a heavy subsidy, and conforming to the Catholic Church. 
Isaac did not fulfil these onerous conditions, so — 

(6) Tintoretto the younger. The Franks and Venetians 
reconquer Constantinople, 1204. It was on this occasion 
that the Doge sent to Venice the Bronze Horses, the relics 
of St. James and St. George, the head of St. John the 
Baptist, and the body of St. Lucy. Bodies of saints were 
the chief articles of import during the early Middle Ages. 

(7) Andrea Vicentino. The Crusaders, in St. Sophia, 
elect Baldwin of Flanders as Emperor of the East. 

End wall (8), Aliense. Doge Enrico Dandolo crowns 
Baldwin as Emperor. 

The ceiling of this hall contains several works worthy of 
notice, out of which I select for notice only the three 
largest : — 

The oval nearest the Paradise is by Paolo Veronese ; it 
represents * Venice enthroned as Queen of the Sea, amid 
fancied architecture of a decadent style, with ugly and use- 
less twisted columns ; the loggia contains several good 
portraits of voluptuous women. 

The * central square is by Tintoretto, and is another of the 
later type of pictures in which the Doge is represented as 
doing homage, not to a divine or sainted personage, but to 
an allegorical and secular personification. In this case it is 
Doge Nicolo da Ponte, who offers the homage of the nobles 
and the subject cities to an embodied Venice. The back- 
ground consists of a view of St. Mark's. Below are grouped 
the various arts, handicrafts, and commercial avocations of 
the town and territory. 

The oval furthest from the Paradise is by Palma the 
younger : it represents, again, Venice enthroned and 
crowned by Victory. 

A door near the last picture leads to the 



240 THE DOGE'S PALACE [vn. 

Sala dello Scrutinio, 

where the votes were counted for the election of the Doge. 
A window to the R. in the anteroom here affords a good out- 
look over the Renaissance portion of the building. 

The Sala dello Scrutinio itself is another handsome hall, 
with a fine ceiling, and from its windows impressive views 
are obtained, especially from the one on the L. with the 
balcony, which affords an excellent survey of the Piazza and 
Piazzetta — in particular of the faqade of Sansovino's Library 
and of the very quaint and ornate chimney on the top of 
the Zecca. This is also one of the best points of view for 
the lion of St. Mark and for St. Theodore on his crocodile. 
The richness in colour of the South Front of St. Mark's 
comes out well in the sunlight from this standpoint. 

Re-enter the hall. The entrance wall is entirely occu- 
pied by Palma Giovane's Last Judgment, a work in which 
Palma unequally endeavours to imitate Tintoretto's Paradise ; 
to the L. are the elect, to the R. the damned. 

The other walls are occupied by late historical or pseudo- 
historical pictures, again representing episodes in the history 
of Venice reflecting credit on the Republic. They begin at 
the far side of this room, the end wall of which is wholly 
occupied by the triumphal arch and monument of Francesco 
Morosini, who reconquered the Morea from the Turks in 
1690 ; it was erected in his honour during his lifetime by the 
Senate, as the inscription on the ugly half-length bronze 
figure below testifies. (Hence his title of Peloponnesiacus.) 
Of the pictures which the monument contains (all by 
Lazzarini) the only one worthy of notice is that on the L. 
below, which represents the Doge in his ducal costume and 
armour, holding a marshal's baton, and presenting to Venice 
the reconquered Christian Morea, whose chains he is striking 
off; they lie at her feet, together with the Turkish turban 
and the map of the Morea which symbolise his conquest ; 
Venice herself is somewhat uncomfortably enthroned on St. 
Mark's lion. This is a fair example of the overwrought 
later allegorical treatment of similar subjects. 



vil] THE DOGE'S PALACE 241 

The pictures on the wall on the Piazzetta side are as 
follows : — 

(1) Pepin, king of the Franks, lays siege to the town of 
Rivo Alto in 809, by Vicentino. 

(2) Pepin, and therefore the Frankish Empire, driven away 
from Venice, also by Vicentino. 

(3) Domenico Michiel defeats the Caliph of Egypt in a 
naval engagement at Jaffa, in 1 123, by Peranda. 

(4) Domenico Michiel takes Tyre in 1125. .(This is the 
victory of which the columns in the Piazzetta are trophies.) 
I need hardly add that in all these cases the later Venetians 
figure their ancestors with their own costumes and their own 
weapons of warfare. 

(5) The victory of the Venetians over King Roger of Sicily 
in 1 148, by Marco Vecelli. 

The series continues just opposite : — 

(7) Capture of Zara from the Hungarians in 1346, by 
Tintoretto. 

(8) The victory of Lepanto in 1 571, by Vicentino. 

(9) The battle against the Turks in the Dardanelles in 
1656, by Pietro Liberi. 

The compartments of the ceiling contain similar pictures 
of real or supposed glories of Venice, but of little interest. 

Return through the Sala del Maggior Consiglio to the 
portal by which you first entered that large hall : a door on 
the R. gives access to the 

Library, 

a magnificent collection of books and manuscripts, the 
description of which, however, lies outside the province of 
this Guide. One of its chief treasures is the famous Grimam 
Breviary, with exquisite illuminations by Gerard David, 
Horenbout, and other Flemish masters of the late fifteenth 
century (exhibited on Wednesdays only, in an inadequate 
and unsatisfactory manner). Students of art may obtain 
special leave to consult it. 

The door to the L. leads into the 



242 THE DOGE'S PALACE [vn. 

Archaeological Museum, 

which contains several second-class works of classic art, and 
a few masterpieces. 

ROOM I. — Corridor. Figures of deities, marked on the 
pedestals, and few of them of any exceptional interest. 
Colossal Minerva. Bacchus. Faun and Fauness. Bust of 
Juno, Bust of Doge Francesco Foscari (originally above the 
Porta alia Carta), etc. 

Room II. — State Dressing Room of the Doge, has a very 
charming early Renaissance chimneypiece by P. Lombardo. 
Over the door of entry is a graceful relief of Doge Leonardo 
Loredan adoring the Madonna and Child, accompanied by 
St. Mark, St. Nicholas, and another doubtful saint. Over 
the opposite door is a pretty coloured group of a Madonna 
with angels. Round the walls are portraits of seventeenth- 
century Doges. Notice also the Ducal Cap of Doge Paolo 
Venier. The ^coffered ceiling of this beautiful little room is 
deserving of notice. 

Room III. — {dello Sctcdo) contains ancient maps, the 
earliest of which is that by Fra Mauro (1457), in a round 
frame, near the centre of the room ; it has the south at the 
top of the map, instead of at the bottom as usual. Interesting 
and curious. Close by is a portrait bust of Fra Mauro. In 
the centre of the room is a collection of Roman coins. From 
the L. wi7idow of this room you get an excellent view of 
the domes of St. * Mark's, and the connecting portion 
between the church and palace. Nowhere else can you so 
well observe the oriental shape of the minor cupolas sur- 
mounting the domes. 

Continue along the same line as before into 

ROOM IV, Hall of the Busts. — This has an over-decorated 
Renaissance mantelpiece, and a fine ceiling. It contains a 
collection of Venetian medals and busts. 

ROOM V of the Bronzes, with a fine ceiling and a good 
early Renaissance mantelpiece, topped by ugly later figures, 
contains a few antique bronzes ; round the walls are Greek 
pottery and works of minor interest. 



vii.] THE DOGE'S PALACE 243 

ROOM VI has nothing of note but an Adoration of 
the Magi, by Bonifazio, and a collection of Venetian 
coins. 

The long room beyond this gives access, on the R., to a 
staircase with a fresco of St. Christopher, by Titian (ill pre- 
served), the interest of which is mainly historical. 

The Room of Bronzes, beyond, contains several admirable 
works of the Renaissance. L. of the door, three busts by 
Aspetti, named. In a case by the wall, exquisite medals by 
Pisanello and others. Above, fine bas-reliefs in bronze, by 
Riccio, with the history of the Emperor Constantine— his 
Vision of the Cross, his victory over Maxentius, the discovery 
of the True Cross by Helena, and the Miracle of the True 
Cross, the genuineness of which is proved by its cure of a 
sick man. In the centre, between these, Florentine As- 
sumption of the Virgin. In the middle of the room, bronzes 
and medals, and two Byzantine Ivories. On the R. wall, 
beautiful bronze doors for a tabernacle, containing a relic, 
with a Pieta and Deposition, by Riccio. Tomb in imitation 
of the antique, by Tullio Lombardo, a fine reproduction of 
the Roman spirit. Charming relief of St. Martin dividing 
his cloak with the beggar, by Riccio. In the cases, 
coins and medals of Venice. Many of the other works 
in this room deserve close attention, but cannot here 
be adequately described. This is a collection for the 
leisured. 

Room of the lesser Antiqites. — Minor works of antique 
sculpture : a Venus of the same type as the Capitoline at 
Rome, Ganymede carried away by the eagle, Leda and the 
Swan, an Apollo Citharaedus, and other figures. By the far 
wall stand three of the most important antique works in this 
collection — three ^fallen and dying Gauls, of the school of 
Pergamum, reduced copies (or originals) of sculptures be- 
longing to the same series as the famous (so-called) Dying 
Gladiator of the Capitol at Rome. These are very char- 
acteristic specimens of the local Pergamene school, which 
represented the combat of the Greeks with the invading 
Gauls. 



244 THE DOGES PALACE [vn. 

Room of the larger Antiques. — Other antique figures, 
statuettes of ^Esculapius, and other Grasco-Roman figures. 



Your tickets also entitle you to visit the Dungeons. I am 
not aware of any sufficient reason why you should desire to 
avail yourself of this permission. 



VIII 

THE GRAND CANAL 

V r I A HE Grand Canal (or Canalazzo), the street of the 
J_ nobles, is originally one of the many navigable 
channels by whose aid the waters of the tortuous rivers 
which have formed the lagoon find their way through the 
mud-banks, past the mouths of the Lido, to the open sea. It 
is the original rivo alto, or deep stream, which created 
Venice, and up which the commerce of all countries was able 
to reach the city in the days of her splendour. A Panorama, 
published by Ongania, in the Piazza (i franc), is an excellent 
guide. You will doubtless ascend the Canal many times 
before you come to examine it in detail in this order ; but two 
afternoons at least should be given to exploring its banks in 
the following manner.] 

Begin by ascending the Canal on the Left Bank. Make 
your gondolier keep to the left side till you reach the railway 
station. 

The long low building which flanks the exact end of the 
Canal, looking seaward, is the Dogana di Mare, erected in 
1676 by Benoni — a futile work of the later Renaissance, 
unpicturesque in itself, though rendered to some extent a 
pleasing object by its imposing position. Two Atlases on 
the summit bear a gilded globe, surmounted by a bronze 
Fortuna, which serves as a vane, its sail turning with every 
change of the wind. The low building in line with and 
beyond this, again, consists of the warehouses and sheds of 
the Dogana. 

A little recessed stands the Semi7iario Patriarcale (once a 



246 THE GRAND CANAL [vm. 

monastery), an uninteresting building of the later Renais- 
sance, by Longhena, 1672. 

Santa Maria della Salute, already noticed. 

Pass the mouth of a canal, the Rio della Salute. The 
beautiful brick apse, a short way down this Rio, on the R., is 
that of the secularised church of San Gregorio, with narrow 
and slender fourteenth-century Gothic windows, extremely 
charming. The buildings connected with it at the corner of 
the canal belong to the secularised monastery of San Gregorio, 
of which this church was the oratory. They have two 
charming Gothic windows, and a beautiful square doorway, 
surmounted by a pleasing relief of St. Gregory, patron of the 
monastery. The court within (land at the steps and see it if 
you have not already done so) is perhaps the most picturesque 
little cortile in Venice. 

The large new palace which succeeds this, as you move 
westward, is the Palazzo Genovese, erected in 1898, in imita- 
tion of the earlier Gothic buildings, of which, however, it is 
a somewhat stiff and formal copy. 

Pass a dry street. The first palace which you reach 
beyond this street is the Semitecolo, with its beautiful early 
Gothic windows, having false cusps in the arches, so as to 
make the head a trefoil. Observe on this canal the gradual 
growth of the arch till it reaches the Doge's Palace type. 
Notice here, too, the beautiful balustrade of the balconies 
with the little lions, on the second floor ; these are original 
and belong to the period. The balcony on the first floor 
shows the debased style of the seventeenth or eighteenth 
century. Keep an eye in future on the various types of 
balustrade to the balconies. Don't needlessly burden your 
memory with the names of the palaces ; confine your atten- 
tion to the architectural features. 

Pass the mouth of a canal, the Rio della Fornace. The 
first house but one beyond it is the Palazzo Volkoff, inhabited 
by Duse, the famous actress. Its windows on the first floor 
are of an early Gothic type. The palace just after this 
(slightly out of the perpendicular), with many windows to 
the L. and few to the R., and numerous plaques of coloured 



viii.] THE GRAND CANAL 24; 

marble inserted as adornments in the decorative work, is the 
Palazzo Dario, a building in the early Renaissance style, 
and one of the most pleasing. 

Pass the mouth of a canal, Rio delle Toreselle. Wine 
vaults ; then, first floor only of the vast eighteenth-century 
Palazzo Venier, never completed, with great lions' heads on 
its base ; it now contains a garden. 

Beyond this, two unimportant houses, then the Falcon, a 
feeble late palace ; after it, the beautiful Gothic Palazzo da 
Mula; notice the softening of its angles ; it is in the style 
of the fourteenth century, middle Gothic, with a seventeenth- 
century balcony on the second floor. 

Next comes the Barbarigo, fifteenth century, early Renais- 
sance, with very simple pillars : but the whole front is now 
filled with very glaring mosaics of the Venice and Murano 
Glass Company. 

The little Campo which opens beyond this palace gives you 
a glimpse of the pretty small church of San Vio. Beyond 
it, mouth of a canal, Rio di San Vio. 

The uninteresting palace at the far corner of this canal, 
marked by posts {pall) surmounted by the fleur-de-lis, is the 
Loredan, of late inhabited by Don Carlos, the Spanish 
Pretender ; hence the Bourbon lilies. (These poles or 
stakes throughout Venice bear the heraldic colours of the 
inhabitants of the palace. They serve as boat-houses.) 
Then Balbi Valier, eighteenth century. 

After this, a very pretty garden, beyond which rises the 
Palazzo Manzoni, a handsome, somewhat over-decorated 
building in the early Renaissance style, fifteenth century ; note 
its frieze of eagles, the decorative work on its base, and the 
delicate balcony on the second floor. This is a very charac- 
teristic and fine specimen of early Renaissance architecture. 
After an uninteresting house, pass the mouth of the Rio 
della Carita. 

Secularised church of the Carita, now used as part of the 
Academy. Steamboat station Accademia. Pass under the 
iron bridge. Old building of the Scuola della Carita y 
ornate modern fagade of the Academy. 



248 THE GRAND CANAL [vni. 

Pass the mouth of a dry canal. Three uninteresting 
buildings (the last with lions and old columns on its quay) ; 
then, a little in advance, Palazzo Contarini degli Scrigni, a 
dull sixteenth-century pseudo-classical building by Scamozzi, 
with lions' heads and a huge human face staring out over 
the doorway. After it (part of the same) a beautiful Gothic 
palace, in the later fifteenth-century style, with the corners 
softened, and good string-courses ; a pretty balcony on the 
first floor, later one above. Notice the intrusive marble 
decoration. 

Pass the mouth of a canal, Rio di San Trovaso. The 
view of this last palace round the corner in the canal is 
strikingly picturesque. Then comes an externally-painted 
Palazzo, with terra-cotta decorative work ; after it, the 
Palazzo del? Ambasciatore (or Loredan), a fine fifteenth- 
century Gothic building (Doge's Palace style), with Renais- 
sance figures of two shield-bearing personages, perhaps St. 
George and St. Theodore. Observe the exaggerated finials 
(top ornaments of the arch) which mark the later (florid) 
Gothic, the softened corners, and the bad late balcony. 

Pass the mouth of a canal, Rio Malpaga. Beyond it, 
relics of a palace ; then a row of small palaces, unimportant. 

Pass the mouth of the Rio San Barnaba. The huge and 
lofty building beyond this, with more or less Doric, Ionic, 
and Corinthian columns in its three floors, is the Rezzonico, 
formerly inhabited by Robert Browning, the poet ; it is an 
over-decorated square mass, by Longhena, architect of the 
Salute, imposing from its mere size, but otherwise unin- 
teresting. 

The next two palaces are late and feeble. Beyond them, 
by the bend of the stream, comes a famous group, much 
painted by modern artists, the first two of the set being the 
palaces of the Giustiniani family, and the third, a little 
taller, that of the Foscari. All of these are buildings in the 
style of the Doge's Palace, the Giustiniani having bad late 
balconies ; the Foscari has much more beautiful railings, 
and its arches are in some cases simpler ; its coats-of-arms 
are held by ugly (late) angels. 



viil] THE GRAND CANAL 249 

Pass the mouth of the Rio Foscari. At the corner, a 
beautiful old lamp. Then, Guggenheim's furniture shop, of 
the seventeenth century. 

Beyond the next small canal rises a dull sixteenth- 
century Renaissance palace. 

Steamboat station San Toma. 

Pass the Rio San Toma. This is followed by two or three 
uninteresting palaces, the next which deserves note being 
one with four balconies, having pretty balustrades of a con- 
temporary type, and crowned by lions ; the recessed cusps 
of these arches are purely ornamental. 

Beyond, the Palazzo Dona, recognisable by the painted 
cherubs on its second floor. Next, the Palazzo Pisam, 
Gothic style of the Doge's Palace, fifteenth century, but its 
second floor has a rather original arcade, and its cornice and 
parapet deserve notice ; the balconies have been modernised. 

Jesurum's workrooms. Pass the mouth of the Rio San 
Polo. The red palace just beyond this is the Cappello, long 
inhabited by Sir A. H. Layard. Next to it, the Vendramin, 
early sixteenth-century Renaissance, with decorative marble 
insertions. After this, Quiri?ii y seventeenth century ; a gate, 
and then the Palazzo Bernardo, fifteenth century, style of 
the Doge's Palace, with softened angles and square balus- 
trades to the main bakony. 

Pass the little Rio della Madonetta and one dull house ; 
then the lovely little * Palazzo Dona, the first floor of which 
{above the mezzanino) is one of the most beautiful speci- 
mens left of twelfth-century Byzantine-Romanesque work, 
with stilted arches (i.e. not springing at once from their 
base, but raised on straight supports) surrounded by most 
delicate ornamentation ; above are plaques with animal 
symbolism. 

Next to the Dona, but separated by a little pergola, is 
the Palazzo Saibante, a more regular twelfth-century Roman- 
esque building, retaining only one beautiful arcade, with 
stilted arches and exquisite Byzantine capitals, above which 
there is animal symbolism, and a delicate string-course of 
ornament. 



250 THE GRAND CANAL [vm. 

Garden, with house recessed ; then, the Palazzo Tiepolo, 
a dull sixteenth-century building, by Sansovino, crowned by 
two meaningless obelisks. 

Pass the Rio dei Meloni. Palazzo Businello, Byzan- 
tine-Romanesque, with two charming arcades of stilted 
arches ; the balcony is unfortunately modern. After this, 
a projecting house, and then another ruined palace, with 
fragments of a beautiful Romanesque arcade in two stories, 
having a Gothic window inserted ; the capitals of these 
columns are worth notice. 

Beyond this, a garden, and several uninteresting houses, 
behind which is seen the tower of San Silvestro. 

Nothing more of interest till we reach the Ponte di 
Rialto, erected in 1592 by Antonio da Ponte, in place of 
an older wooden one. In itself merely a bridge of a bad 
period, this work is strikingly picturesque in virtue of its 
single high span, its parapet and balustrade, and the arcaded 
row of shops which occupy part of its central portion. The 
bridge has, on the face by which we approach it, an An- 
nunciation, an extreme instance of the separation of Our 
Lady from the Announcing Angel. Gabriel is in the span- 
dril to the L., Our Lady in that to the R. ; the keystone is 
formed by the dove flying towards the Madonna. The feast 
of the Annunciation is the festa of Venice. 

Pass under the bridge. Beyond it, Palace of the Camer- 
lenghi, or Chamberlains (Treasury of the Republic), a 
heavy but handsome Renaissance work by Bergamasco, 
early sixteenth century, picturesque at certain angles, owing 
to the irregularity of the area on which it stands. 

Then, somewhat recessed, the Old Buildings of the 
Rialto (in front of which is the Herb Market), followed by 
the projecting New Buildings, once Sansovino's, but so 
much renewed as to be practically almost modern. 

Beyond this long line of buildings we come to the Fish 
Market, often unpleasant to the sense of smell, but pic- 
turesque by virtue of its quaint fishing craft, and odd live- 
fish baskets. 

Pass the mouth of the Rio della Pescaria. In the back- 



Vlii.] THE GRAND CANAL 251 

ground the tower of Sant' Aponal. The next building of 
interest is the Palazzo Aforosiui, with softened corners, a 
fine fourteenth-century Gothic building, in the Doge's Palace 
style. The house next but one to it, though uninteresting 
in itself, has beautiful old balconies and other relics of past 
splendour. 

Pass the mouth of a canal, the Rio di San Cassan. Then 
comes a little *Palazzo of early Gothic architecture, without 
cusps to its arches, showing a transitional form between 
Venetian Romanesque and Venetian Gothic. After it, the 
huge Palazzo Corner del la Regina (now the Monte di 
Pieta), a late building of 1724. It occupies the site of a 
palace belonging to Queen Catharine of Cyprus. 

Pass the mouth of a canal, the Rio Ca' Pesaro. Just 
beyond it, with a fine corner view, the gigantic Palazzo 
Pesaro, built by Longhena, architect of the Salute, in 1679; 
though overloaded with ornament, as is all Longhena's 
work, this huge mansion has a certain imposing stateliness 
by virtue of its mere size and of the enormous bosses of 
faceted stone which form its lower floor. Good views round 
its corners. 

Pass another small canal, and then, just beyond it, comes 
the tawdry baroque fagade of the church of St. Eustac= 
chio, commonly known in Venetian as San Stae, erected in 
1709. Next to it is the small * Palazzo Priuli, with a lovely 
first-floor arcade, early Gothic, having a somewhat Oriental 
curve in the arch, derived by early Venetian Gothic from 
Alexandria or Cairo. The capitals of the columns are 
characteristic of the period. It has also a dainty little 
balcony, with graceful slender columns. 

Beyond this, a garden ; then, a small palace with an 
arcade on the first floor, slightly resembling the last, but 
with cusps to the arches. These various stages in the 
evolution of Venetian Gothic should be carefully noted and 
allowed to fall into their proper order. 

Pass the mouth of a canal, Rio di Ca' Tron ; then 
another of Longhena's seventeenth-century fronts, encum- 
bered with coats-of-arms, twisted into an ugly wriggling 



252 THE GRAND CANAL [vm. 

pattern. The long building next to this, with curious battle- 
ments, is the ancient Granary of the Republic^ still bearing 
a few coats-of-arms. 

Pass the mouth of a canal, Rio dei Megio. Next to this 
is the water-front of the very early Byzantine and Roman- 
esque palace now known as the *Fondaco de' Turchi, a 
name which, however, it did not acquire until the seven- 
teenth century, when it was let out to the Turkish merchants 
in Venice. This magnificent twelfth-century palace, though 
recently so much restored as to have lost all air of antiquity 
and the greater part of its early interest, is still in a certain 
symbolical way representative of the splendid homes of the 
Byzantine period to which belongs the basilica of St. Mark's, 
and of which this is, among palaces, the only surviving ex- 
ample all in the one style. Its modernised arches, capitals, 
shafts, bases, parapets, and decorative plaques are all typical, 
if not original, and it presents us with a good picture of what 
the Grand Canal must have looked like in many of its parts 
before the Gothic and Renaissance invasion. Study its front 
carefully. 

This building is now the Museo Civico, containing sculp- 
tures and paintings, which should be visited later. 

Continuing your inspection of the L. bank of the canal. 
Steamboat station Museo Civico. After this, for some dis- 
tance there are few objects of interest till you reach the 
little Palazzo Giovanelli, with a good balcony and Gothic 
arches of the middle period. Pass the mouth of a dry canal ; 
then a garden. The only objects of interest further on along 
this bank are the church of San Simeone Grande (a little 
back) and the ugly domed church of San Simeone Piccolo, 
built in 1718. 

The church of San Simeone Grande, not far from the 
railway station, is mainly noticeable for a very noble "^tomb 
of the namesake prophet, whose remains rest within it. 
The effigy of the saint, by one Marco the Roman (1317), is a 
splendid work of Gothic sculpture. It should be compared 
with that of St. Isidore in St. Mark's and that of Doge 
Andrea Dandolo. 



viii.] THE GRAND CANAL 253 

Turn at the Railway Station and begin the examina- 
tion of the Right Bank. 

The ugly baroque front of the church of the Scalzi adjoins 
the station ; it is an overloaded building of the seventeenth 
century. The great monastery of Barefooted Carmelites to 
which it once belonged has left no remains visible. Steam- 
boat station Ferrovia. After this, several uninteresting- 
buildings. 

The tall narrow Palazzo which is the first to arrest our 
attention as we glide homeward is the Flangini, an over- 
decorated building of the seventeenth century, less debased, 
however, than most work of its period. Then comes the 
marble transept of San Geremia, with the dome behind it 
— a church built in 1753 ; it has a good campanile a little in 
the background. 

Steamboat station San Geremia. 

The palace beyond, with the conspicuous eagles, is the 
Palazzo Labia, by Longhena. 

Pass the mouth of the Cannaregio, a broad canal, down 
which the steamboats go to Mestre ; in the background, 
beyond the bridge, to the R., are the tall houses of the Old 
Ghetto. 

After some uninteresting buildings comes a Renaissance 
palace, probably altered from Gothic, as it has its corners 
softened. Then a little garden. 

Ugly brick front, unfinished, of the church of San Mar- 
cuola (properly St. Hermagoras and Fortunatus : note all 
these dedications : they cast light on the saints in the arcades 
of St. Mark's). Beyond it, a Gothic palace of the early type, 
with slight cusps to the arches. 

Pass the mouth of the Rio dei Servi : then, a garden. 
Beyond it, with blue posts, the gigantic Palazzo Vendramin- 
Calergi, commonly known as the Palazzo Non nobis, from 
the inscription on its ground floor (Non nobis, Domine, non 
nobis — Not unto us, O Lord, etc.). This is a cold but stately 
Renaissance palace in the style of the Lombardi (1481), with 
good eagles on its frieze, and relieved by inserted decorative 
marbles : the balustrades apparently come from an earlier 



254 THE GRAND CANAL [vm. 

building. (Wagner the composer lived and died here.) 
Beyond it, one of its wings with the garden in front of it. 
Observe the chimneys, which here and elsewhere in Venice 
are very curious. 

The next Gothic palace (Erizzo) is of the Doge's Palace 
type, with a late balcony spoiling its windows. Just beyond 
it, a tasteful Renaissance building. 

Here the canal makes an angle at the entrance to the Rio 
della Maddalena. Immediately after the bend, on the front 
of a Renaissance building with the remains of frescoes, is a 
Madonna della Misericordia sheltering votaries. This is 
succeeded by several uninteresting late houses. 

Pass the mouth of the Rio di Noale. There is nothing in 
particular to notice here till you reach the Rio di San Felice, 
just beyond which rises the Palazzo Fontanel, built by San- 
sovino, and easily recognised by the two meaningless 
obelisks on its roof. Almost next to this, after the Children's 
School, is the Coletti of the eighteenth century, recognised 
by its busts on the upper floor and the statues on the ground 
floor. Adjacent to it is one of the most picturesque and 
certainly one of the most popularly pleasing of the palaces, 
the *Ca d'Oro, a very ornate building of the Doge's Palace 
type (fifteenth century), with some graceful traceries ; its 
string-courses, cornice, and parapet are all worthy of notice ; 
its angles are softened by three twisted columns where one 
is more usual. The fagade is the work of the Buon family, 
who built the Piazzetta front of the Doge's Palace. Though 
somewhat meretricious in its splendour for a Gothic building, 
it is undeniably very pretty and has original features : the 
balconies have slender and graceful balustrades. It was 
once gilded : hence its name. 

Steamboat station Ca d'Oro. 

The next palace but one, after the little garden, is the 
Sagredo, fourteenth century, in an early and somewhat 
simpler style ; its lower arcade being almost transitional 
between Byzantine-Romanesque and Gothic, while its upper 
arcade partakes of the Doge's Palace type. 

Pass a broad open space. Just beyond it is the pretty 



vin.j THE GRAND CANAL 255 

little Palazzo Foscari, with middle Gothic arcades, and a 
Madonna and Child on its second story. Notice in this 
and many other cases the shafts of the columns. 

Next door but one is the Palazzo Michiel dalle Colonnc, 
a large but uninteresting seventeenth-century palace, with 
an open arcade on its ground floor, and half-length figures 
«n the middle pediments. 

The Gothic palace a little beyond this, with dark blue 
posts, has simple cusped arches, with bad capitals to the 
columns, and late balconies ; it has been largely modernised 
in the seventeenth century. 

Pass the mouth of the Rio dei SS. Apostoli, down which 
is visible the tower of the church of the same name. Just 
beyond it stands the extremely interesting ^Palazzo da 
Mosto, a Byzantine palace, more or less ruinous, with large 
round arches on its ground floor, and a good round- arched 
arcade on its first floor. The summits of these last arches, 
however, simulate and prefigure the Gothic type by being 
apparently pointed, though when you look close you see 
that the real arch is itself circular. Above are fine de- 
corative plaques, richly wrought with animal symbolism, 
and a figure of Christ blessing. What remains of this once 
beautiful half-transitional palace is thus Byzantine in under- 
lying reality, but apparently Gothic in external form. One 
sees Oriental influence. 

Next to it comes a simple, tolerably early Gothic Palace. 

Pass the mouth of the Rio di San Crisostomo, near which 
in the background you catch a glimpse in passing of a few 
exquisite windows belonging to a transitional early Gothic 
palace ; these windows show well the first form of the 
Venetian Gothic, just altered from the Byzantine. 

The only other building of interest before we reach the 
Rialto Bridge is the large dull block close to it with five 
open arches on its ground floor, and a curious parapet on 
top ; this is the Fondaco de' Tedeschi, or Guild of the 
German Merchants in Venice : heavy sixteenth century. An 
earlier Teutonic guildhall existed here from the thirteenth 
century : a relic of the commercial importance of Venice, 



256 THE GRAND CANAL [vm. 

which imported Oriental goods and passed them on to 
Germany. The quarter about the bridge, specially known 
as Rialto, was the business district, like "the City" in 
London. Here all the guilds of foreign merchants con- 
gregated. Get Shakespeare out of your head : he was never 
in Venice. 

Pass under the Ponte di Rialto. The figures on this 
front of the bridge as we approach it are, L., St. George (or 
Theodore ?) and R., St. Mark, the two chief patrons of the 
city. 

After passing the bridge we have on our L. the Riva del 
Carbon. Steamboat station Rialto, for passengers going E. 
The first important building beyond it is the Palazzo 
Mam'n, the seat of the last unhappy Doge (now the Banco 
d' Italia), a frigid and jejune building in the Renaissance 
style of the sixteenth century, by Sansovino, which absurdly 
recalls the City of London. 

Steamboat station Carbon, for passengers going W. 

The large and handsome Gothic palace behind it is the 
* Palazzo Bembo, a good specimen of the fourteenth-century 
pointed style, with the arches scarcely cusped, if at all, 
though the finials are already rather heavy ; it has good 
columns and softened angles, but is ruined by an ugly late 
balustrade added to its balconies. 

Beyond the red houses which follow comes a dainty little 
*Gothic palace, said to be all that remains of the home of 
the great Doge Enrico Dandolo, the conqueror of Constan- 
tinople. It is, however, of rather ornate architecture, later 
than his age, with earlier animal symbolism still untouched 
in its upper floor ; the arcades are curious, and differ from 
those of any other palace. 

After a few dull houses, we arrive at the magnificent 
**Palazzo Loredan, perhaps the most beautiful of all the 
houses on the Grand Canal. It is a splendid example of 
a Byzantine-Romanesque Venetian palace, with a distinct 
tinge of oriental feeling ; the capitals of some of its columns 
are exquisitely beautiful, especially the double pair to the R. 
and L. of the main balcony (which is later, and ruins the 



viii.j THE GRAND CANAL 257 

effect). The arcades and ornaments of this glorious house 
should be closely studied. Above stand figures of two men- 
at-arms at the extreme end, whose inscriptions are illegible 
to me, though I believe them to be St. Vitus and St. George. 
The central figures, under later (added) Gothic canopies 
(with angels in the finials) are, L., Justice with her sword 
and scales, and, R., Venice seated between her lions, and 
holding the column of St. Mark surmounted by the winged 
lion. I advise you to study this exquisite facade well, and 
to recur to it every time you pass it. It is almost pure 
Byzantine, with very little Gothic alteration. 

Next to it is the * Palazzo Farsetti, also Romanesque and 
of the twelfth century, but in a simpler style and much less 
decorated. This building, indeed, is rather pure Roman- 
esque than Byzantine, and shows absolutely no Oriental 
influence. Its lower arcade is graceful and dignified ; the 
capitals of the columns in the upper arcade deserve atten- 
tion. The two buildings together are now used as the 
Municipality of the City of Venice, and their posts there- 
fore bear the lion of St. Mark, in gold, on a dark blue 
ground. 

Beyond this comes a pretty little Renaissance palace, 
converted from Gothic, and with two Gothic windows still 
visible round the corner ; it flanks the Fondamenta in 
picturesque fashion. After a small early Renaissance palace 
with decorated plaques comes the huge Palazzo Grimani, 
built by Sammicheli in the sixteenth century and now used 
as the Court of Appeal ; though destitute of real beauty it 
is imposing from its mere size and its fine approach, and is 
comparatively free from overloaded ornament. 

Beyond it, pass the mouth of the Rio di San Luca, at the 
corner of which stands the Palazzo Cavalli, one of the most 
ornate palaces of the Doge's Palace type ; it bears on a 
mantle the crest of its owner, a horse, an armoirie parla?ite 
or rebus revealing the name of its owners. The next Gothic 
palace is the Tron, with curious capitals to its first-floor 
windows, bearing heads in the centre. 

For some time after this we see nothing but uninteresting 



•J53 THE GRAND CANAL [vm. 

late palaces — mere town houses of the bad age — until we 
pass the mouth of the Rio di Ca Michiel and that of the 
Rio dell' Albero, just beyond the last of which rises the 
large Palazzo Corner=5pinelli, in the style of the Lom- 
bardi, with a handsome staircase, and the usual Renaissance 
decoration of coloured inserted marbles. 

Steamboat station Sant' Angelo. 

Pass the mouth of the Rio Sant' Angelo. Just beyond it, 
Palazzo Garzoni, fourteenth-century Gothic, with simple 
windows showing very slight cusps ; the balcony is modern. 
This is succeeded by a suite of palaces of the Mocenigo 
family, of uninteresting late Renaissance architecture, whose 
only claim to notice is that Byron once inhabited one of 
them ; the lion's head is conspicuous on them all. Be- 
yond these, very dull Renaissance palaces, the best of 
which is the Contarini dalle Figure, by the Lombardi, so 
called from the busts with which it is adorned. Then at the 
bend of the canal the pretty little Gothic Palazzo Lezze, 
spoiled by its ugly balconies. The one next to it has simple 
Gothic windows. 

The next bend brings us abreast with the immense mass 
of the eighteenth-century Palazzo Moro-Lin, noticeable for 
its hrge open arcade on the ground floor, but looking other- 
wise very much like an eligible and commodious modern 
warehouse. 

Beyond it, with an extremely white fagade and shields bla- 
zoned above the lateral dcorways, towers the huge Palazzo 
Grassz, also of the eighteenth century, and greatly resembling 
a prosperous club in Pall Mall. Just after passing this we 
open out the little Campo San Samuele, with the picturesque 
church and campanile of the same name. The Campo is 
flanked by buildings with Gothic windows. The corner 
Palazzo beyond it is of the seventeenth century, next to it 
a garden, prettily balustraded. After this, the base of the 
houses is formed by the colossal substructures of a vast 
palace begun for the Duke of Milan in the fifteenth century 
(Cd del Duca) y but ordered to be discontinued by command 
of the signory ; the only part of the palace now largely 



viii.] THE GRAND CANAL 259 

visible is the corner near the mouth of the little Rio del 
Duca. 

Pass this Rio. Beyond it we reach the Palazzo Falter, 
with a pretty arcade of the fifteenth century. Then comes 
the Giastiniani-Lolin, another of Longhena's monotonous 
buildings, much less decorated, however, than was his 
wont. 

Skirt the Campo San Vitale, with the church and cam- 
panile of San Vidal in the background. 

5an Vitale, near the Iron Bridge, which leads to the 
Academy, has in the choir behind the High Altar a famous 
Carpaccio, representing the patron, San Vitale, the martyr 
of Ravenna, on horseback. Close by is his wife, Valeria, 
with St. John the Baptist, St. James, and St. George. 
Separated from these saints by a high screen are San Vitale's 
two sons, St. Gervasius and St. Protasius, attended by St. 
Peter and St. Andrew. Above, in clouds, the Madonna in 
glory gazes down upon the martyr. 

Pass under the Iron Bridge. The large and well-kept 
palace which rises beyond it is the Palazzo Cavalli, now 
occupied by Baron Franchetti, a wealthy Murano glass- 
blower; it is in the Doge's Palace style, with softened 
angles, good balustrades, and an arcade on the first floor 
suggesting the transition from the windows of the Frari (see 
later) to the Doge's Palace type. 

Pass the mouth of the Rio dell' Orso. Just after it, 
Palazzo Barbaro, with some good early Gothic windows on 
its second floor ; most of the balconies are modernised, 
rich coloured-marble insertions. Beyond this come several 
uninteresting late buildings. 

Pass the mouth of the Rio del Santissimo. More unin- 
teresting late buildings. Beyond them, a garden, after which 
we reach the huge Palazzo Corner della Ca Grande, a stately 
but dull building, by Sansovino, in the later Renaissance 
style. 

Pass the Rio di San Maurizio ; at its corner, a little Gothic 
palace. 

Steamboat station Santa Maria del Giglio ; behind it a 



2 6o THE GRAND CANAL [vm. 

Gothic palace, almost entirely altered into Renaissance in 
its lower portion. 

Pass the end of a canal now built over, and commanding 
the front of Santa Maria Zobenigo. Beyond it, Palazzo 
Gritti^ fourteenth-century Gothic, with simple arches below, 
and those above somewhat Saracenic in form ; it is now part 
of the Grand Hotel. » 

Pass the mouth of the Rio delle Ostreghe. Beyond it, 
Palazzo Fmi, Renaissance, also forming part of the 
Grand Hotel. Then Manolesso Ferro, fourteenth-century 
Gothic, largely altered into Renaissance, with bad bal- 
conies ; likewise swallowed up by the devouring maw of the 
Grand Hotel. 

Just after this, at a somewhat lower level, we perceive the 
very singular front of the little * Palazzo Contarini-Fasan, 
religiously described by the gondoliers as "Desdemona's 
Palace," whatever that may mean. It has extremely ornate 
arches, with large finials, and a somewhat Saracenic curve ; 
its balconies are unique, the parapet being composed of a 
singular wheel ornament, not without a certain meretricious 
beauty ; its cornice is noteworthy. This dainty little house 
is perhaps the most popular favourite, after the Ca d'Oro, 
on the whole line of the Grand Canal ; but it is over- 
decorated, though in many ways admirable. The lower 
Palazzo next to it has good balconies and typical middle 
Gothic windows. 

Beyond this, we pass several uninteresting houses ; then 
the Palazzo Tiepolo, now the Hotel Britannia. The rest of 
this part of the Canal is mainly occupied by hotels, few of 
which have any artistic pretensions. The Hotel de l'Europe, 
however, occupies the Palazzo Giustiniani, a tolerable 
Gothic building of the fifteenth century. 

Beyond the Europa come the gardens of the Royal Palace, 
with the Procuratie Nuove in the background ; then the 
Zecca, already described, the lagoon front of the Libreria 
Vecchia, the Piazzetta, with the granite columns, and the 
Doge's Palace. At its far end we pass the Rio di Palazzo ; 
the building which succeeds it, and which is connected with 



viii.] THE GRAND CANAL 261 

the Palace by the Bridge of Sighs, being the Criminal 
Prison, built by Antonio da Ponte in 1589. A little further 
on comes the Hotel Daniele, formerly the Palazzo Dandolo, 
a good Gothic building in the Doge's Palace style. The 
Riva degli Schiavoni, which stretches from this point east- 
ward nearly to the Public Gardens, has comparatively few 
points of interest ; those which it has will be briefly de- 
scribed or alluded to elsewhere. 



One of the most notable facts about the palaces of the 
Grand Canal is the witness which they bear to the early 
civilisation and peace of Venice. In northern Europe 
the houses of mediaeval nobles are dark and gloomy castles ; 
even at Florence, the palaces of great families like the Strozzi 
and the Medici (now Riccardi) are, as late as the fifteenth 
century, built mainly for defence, with single heavy external 
doors or gates, no openings on the ground floor, and small 
grated windows alone on the e?itresol. But in commercial 
and oligarchical Venice, protected as she was by her moat 
of lagoon, and firmly ruled by her strong internal govern- 
ment, even the old Romanesque palaces, like the Fondaco 
dei Turchi, the Loredan, and the Farsetti, are already open 
gentlemen's houses, "built for pleasure and for state," with 
free means of access, broad arcades, abundant light, and a 
general air of peace and security. The development of the 
later Venetian style, as seen in the Libreria Vecchia and the 
Procuratie, from this early, open, and airy type, is well worth 
noticing. In fact, the native Venetian ideal, traversing all 
styles, persists throughout, in spite of endless changes ot 
architectural fashion. 



IX 

MUSEO CIVICO 

(Correr Museum) 

THE Municipal Museum, which includes the Correr 
Collection, is close to the steamboat station Museo 
Civico, on the Grand Canal. (Open daily 9 to 3 ; admission, 
1 franc ; Sundays and holidays free.) 

This building has been restored in its character as an 
Italo-Byzantine Palace, with a number of sculptured panels 
upon the fagade. 

On entering turn to the left, through the door which leads 
on to the Loggia opening on the Canal. Here are a number 
of sculptures of the fifteenth and sixteenth centuries. 

35. Bas-relief of St. Martin, 1468. 40. Bas-relief of an 
Angel, fifteenth century. 14. Sculptured Altar-piece, fif- 
teenth century. 16. Mater Misericordia, early sixteenth 
century. 18. Bas-relief of the Virgin with a Doge kneeling 
in veneration, sixteenth century. 

Return to the entrance hall, and pass through into the 
Cloister and court. 

The sculptures collected here are chiefly of the Romanesque 
period, dating from the ninth to the twelfth centuries. The 
work is generally rough, sometimes barbarous, but there is 
nothing feeble nor insincere. The stonemason expresses 
himself in simple, direct fashion, making use, indifferently, of 
the traditional symbols of the Christian faith, or of Eastern 
figures, to which probably some not very precise significance 
was attached by custom. 

The principal subject is the Cross, commemorating not 
the Crucifixion, but the triumph of the Resurrection. The 
262 



ix.] MUSEO CI VIC O 263 

Cross stands between two trees, or two palm leaves, or two 
supporting animals, such as griffins or lions. The trees may 
signify Life, or Resurrection, or simply Paradise. When 
birds eat the fruit, it is specifically the Tree of Life, " which 
bore twelve manner of fruits, and whose leaves were for the 
healing of the nations." The interlacing of braided and 
plaited cords, which often surrounds the Cross, is always so 
arranged that it has neither beginning nor end, thus indi- 
cating Eternity, like the Alpha and Omega. 

On the right wall of the Cloister note the following : — 
88. Lion of St. Mark's, of the twelfth century. 1 13. Ancient 
font carved with lions, twelfth century. 105. Fragment of a 
screen, tenth century. 109. Screen of the ninth century. 
1 10. Another screen of the tenth century. 116. Three 
capitals from the Farsetti Palace. 117. Relief of the Cruci- 
fixion, fourteenth century. At the end of this Cloister is a 
mosaic pavement. The Cloister across the end of the Court 
has remains of antique sculpture and sarcophagi. 

The Cloister opposite to the entrance contains remains of 
sculpture, capitals, etc., in the style of the Renaissance. 

In the open court there area number of interesting Well= 
heads. 362. Carved, with a Cross between two trees, lamb 
bearing the Cross, birds feeding, etc., of the eighth century. 
Each group is framed under an arch of braided interlacings. 
The two circular ornaments above the Cross stand for the 
sun and the moon, and the trees are represented (as in many 
other examples of this period) bending towards the Cross, 
in adoration. 

363 and 364. Cross between trees, of the ninth century. 
Note the interlaced designs upon the Cross itself. 

365. A spirited design of griffins supporting the tree. 
Above it a frieze of birds and animals eating leaves ; from 
Torcello. 366. Two birds drink from a vase, Cross 
between trees, bird perched on an animal, birds feed from 
tree, said to come from Murano ; eleventh century. 367. 
Birds feed on trees, Cross between two trees ; ninth century. 
360. A large example, square in form and more elaborate, 
with the same subjects treated in the same style ; tenth cen- 



264 MUSEO CIV/CO [ix. 

tury. In the centre there is an unnumbered specimen 
carved with a tree between harpies, opposed griffins, and 
peacocks feeding". 

Climb the stairs and enter Sala I, with a collection of 
weapons, armour, banners, etc. Pass through and enter 

Sala XVI. 

Turn to the L. 8. Small panel of the Crucifixion in the 
Paduan manner, sometimes attributed to Giovanni Bellini. 
6. Agony in the Garden, also in the Paduan style of Giovanni 
Bellini. 5. Two ladies playing with dogs and birds, by 
Carpaccio. 19. Doge Francesco Foscari, by Gentile 
Bellini. 18. Altar-piece, by Quirizio da Murano. 16. 
Doge Giovanni Mocenigo, by Giovanni Bellini. 11. Pieta, 
attributed to Giovattni Belli?ii. 12. In centre of room, a 
bust attributed to Riccio. 

Sala XV. 

Turn to the L. On the upper line. 41. Annunciation, by 
Lazzaro Sebastiani. 5 1 and 42. By Girolamo Santa Croee. 
43. Madonna and Child, by Marco Basaiti. 35. Crucifixion, 
attributed to Jacopo Bellini. 34. Madonna and Child, by 
Pasqualino Venezia?io. 2 1 . Madonna and Child, by Sicfano 
Ve?iezia?io. 14. Christ enthroned with Saints, by Lorenzo 
Venezia?io. 9. Madonna and Child. 10. Crucifixion ; and 
3. Another Crucifixion, all of the Byzantino - Venetian 
school. On the window wall, 65. Genealogical tree of 
Christ, with the Crucifixion in the centre. Byzantino- 
Venetian school of the fourteenth century. 

Sala XIV. 

contains a collection of books and illuminated MSS. 
Many of the latter are official documents. 

Turn to the L., in first case, 1 1 1, a miniature of the school 
of Lorenzo Veneziano. Near the window note an interesting 
collection of "Portolani" early maps, with sailing directions. 



ix.] MUSEO CIVICO 265 

Sala XII. 

Turn to the L. Case with fine Venetian glass. On 

window wall, opposite the door of entrance, fine ebony 
cabinets inlaid with tortoise-shell. On end wall, cabinet of 
porcelain. In the centre of the room there are a few 
interesting enamels and signet rings. The other cabinets 
in the centre of this room contain a fine collection of faience 
and glass. Note in particular one beautiful piece of blue 
glass with figures, " fabbrica dei Berovieri," of the fifteenth 
century. 

Sala XIII. 

Turn to the L. 103. Madonna and Child in gesso, 
reproduced from Rossellino. 

Cabinet of Ivories. 589. Bacchus drawn by a panther ; 
tenth or eleventh century. 566. Madonna and Child, 
fourteenth century. 549 and 551. Coffers of the fourteenth 
century. 

Above the Ivories. 99. Paliotto of Venetian work, four- 
teenth century, richly gilt reliefs of scenes from the life of 
Christ. 92. Madonna and Child in relief. 86. Ancona, by 
Antonio Veneziano (1 309-1 383). 

A case containing a collection of wood-carvings. 466. 
Part of a Paliotto, with Death of the Virgin, fifteenth century. 
465. Nativity and Adoration, fifteenth-century carving in 
wood, gilt. 443. Cross of the Legion of Honour, found 
after Waterloo, once in possession of Lord Byron. 70. A 
coarse bas-relief, fragment of an Adoration of the Magi, 
seventeenth century. Between the two windows, a case of 
comparatively modern Ivories. In the centre of the room, 
a sixteenth-century box in leather and metal binding. Case 
of gems ; note 806, a fine figure of a tiger. 

Return through SALA XII and enter Sala X, with col- 
lections of tapestries, wood-carvings, etc. 

Sala IX. Tapestries and brocades. From this room 
enter a suite of furnished rooms with figures in costume, 
etc., intended to illustrate Venice of the eighteenth century. 



266 MUSEO CIV/CO [ix. 

Sala VIII. 

Examples of Venetian costumes. At the end of the room 
is a fifteenth-century staircase, from the Palazzo Agnello. 
Over one of the doors, 26. A fifteenth-century Ancona in 
high relief, attributed to Pietro or Bartolommeo da S. Vito. 

Sala VII. 

On the walls, portraits of Venetian ladies, Doges, and 
statesmen. Round the walls there is a fine collection of 
Italian medals. Begin at the case near the door leading 
into Sala V. Vittore Pisano : 1, Alfonso of Naples ; 4, Lio- 
nellod'Este; 11, John VII Paleologus; 12, Cecilia Gonzaga; 
14, Sigismondo Malatesta ; 17, Piccinino ; 18 and 19, Filippo 
Maria Visconti. Matteo de Pasti: 21, Leon Battista Alberti ; 
22, Guarino ; 33, Isotta Malatesa. Antonio Marescotti: 
Maria Galeazzo Visconti. Pietro di Fano : 50, Pasquale 
Malipiero. Fra?icesco Laurana: 58, Louis XI of France. 
Antonio del Pollaiuolo : 74, Innocent VIII. Sperandio de 
Savelli: 80, Giovanni Bentivoglio II ; 86, Francesca Gon- 
zaga. Gentile Bellini: 95, Mahomet II ; Nicolo Fiorentino ; 
96, Pico della Mirandola ; 99, Caterina Sforza. Pastorino 
di Giovanni Michele de Pasterini : 200, Ludovico Ariosto ; 
207, Bianca Capella. Jacopo da Trezzo : 234, Mary Tudor. 
Alessandro Vittoria : 241, Pietro Aretino. Ludovico Leo?ii : 
249, Jacopo Sansovino. Anonymous : 338, Boiardo ; 343, 
Marsilio Ficino ; 355, Savonarola ; 359, Francesco Alidosi. 

In the cases between the windows : 388, Alberto Pio di 
Carpi ; 395, Pietro Bembo ; 398, Tommaso Campeggi ; 
415, Francesca Guicciardini. A and B, two medals of 
Francesco Carrara and his son Francesco Novello, made in 
1390, and supposed to be the first Italian medals. The 
cases in the centre of the room contain a fine collection of 
Venetian coins. 

Sala VI. Official documents and a model of a seven- 
teenth-century galley. 

Sala V. A collection of portraits and costumes. 



ix.] MUSEO CIVICO 267 

Return through Sala VI and enter Sala IV with a 
collection of armour, flags, arms, etc. 

Pass through Sala I to the R., and at the end in Sala III 
there are some fragments of antique sculpture and a flag 
of Francesco Morosini, by a Greek artist. 

Return along Sala I and about half-way to the stairs turn 
to the l. into Sala II. 

To the right. 3. Madonna and Child of the fourteenth 
century. 27. Madonna and Child, by Lazsaro Sebastiano. 
31. Visitation, by Carpaccio. 33. Madonna and Child, by 
Bissolo. 37. Madonna and Child with Saints, Boccaccio 
Boccaccino (1460-15 18). 44. Madonna and Child with 
Saints, school of Friuli. 58. An Umbrian Madonna and 
Child. 57. By Vincenzo da Treviso. The rest of the col- 
lection consists mainly of German, Flemish, and Dutch 
pictures of secondary interest. 74 is attributed to B. Bruyn. 
Nos. 78 to 82 to Roger Van dcr Weyden. Close to the 
door, 220, a Greek picture of the seventeenth century, by 
Zane Emmanuel, and 221, a Byzantine triptych. 

On the upper floor — 

Sala XVIII contains some drawings by Tiepolo and 
others. 

Sala XIX. Architectural drawings of Venice, etc. 

Sala XX. Early printed books, woodcuts, engravings, 
etc. 

Sala XXI. Maps of Venice and cuts, after Tiepolo. 



I do not wish it to be thought that even this final list by 
any means exhausts the objects of interest at Venice — nay, 
even the objects of high aesthetic value. Other works of 
the first importance meet one at every turn. Such are the 
four splendid **Greek lions at the gate of the Arsenal, the 
famous landscape by Giorgione in the Palazzo Qiovanelli 
(admission by private introduction only), and the charming 
Renaissance spiral staircase known as the Scala Minella 
in the Corte del Maltese. But Venice is of course inex- 
haustible, and my object in this work is not so much to 



268 MUSEO CIV/CO [ix. 

mention all its artistic treasures as to put the tourist on the 
right road for appreciating those most salient features which 
his time permits him to see. Any indefatigable traveller 
who finds he can adequately examine all that is recom- 
mended in this book and yet has leisure for more extended 
researches, may turn with advantage to Karl Karoly's 
excellent little work on The Paintings of Venice, where most 
of the principal objects unconsidered here meet with due 
notice. 



EXCURSIONS 

TORCELLO. 

BY far the most important excursion is that to Torcello. 
Steamers go once a day from the Riva degli Schia- 
voni during the season (see the handbills of the moment), 
but as a rule they spend a whole hour uselessly at Burano, 
an uninteresting place, with the object of inducing visitors 
to inspect a lace factory and buy lace. Those who prefer 
early art had better instantly engage one of the rough little 
gondolas which clamour for hire at the landing-place of 
Burano the moment the steamer arrives, and get themselves 
ferried across without delay to Torcello. They will thus 
secure a double advantage ; not only will they have a longer 
time to examine the very interesting Cathedral of Torcello, 
but they will also see it before the main crowd of tourists 
arrives — a matter of great moment, as the keynote of Tor- 
cello is its strange and weird desolation. 

The excursion by gondola from Venice, however, is to be 
recommended as giving a much better idea of the lagoons 
and allowing proper leisure at Torcello. 

The island upon which the once busy town stood has 
now no other buildings except the Duomo, the little church 
of Sta. Fosca, a few cottages, and two small buildings 
adapted as local museums. 

The building nearest to the landing-place is the church of 
Sta. Fosca, surrounded by a picturesque loggia ; further on 
stands the Duomo, simple, bare, and unpromising. In 
spring the setting of fruit gardens and vineyards is very 
lovely. 

269 



270 EXCURSIONS [x. 

At every turn, and under every archway, there is a 
glimpse of lagoon or island, with here and there a cam- 
panile, showing the dwelling-place of some community of 
lace-makers or fishermen. 

The original Duomo was built in 641 ; in 697 it was re- 
paired, and in 874 it was rebuilt. Of these various works 
little now remains except some masonry at the eastern end 
of the building. The existing nave is due to the rebuilding 
which took place in 1008, and except for minor changes in 
the twelfth century it has been little altered. The church is 
of the Basilican type ; it is more nearly allied to Rome and 
Ravenna than to such Romanesque buildings as Modena, 
Parma, and Piacenza. The exterior also resembles the 
exterior of many Ravennese churches ; it is as plain as 
possible. 

The sculptures and mosaics found in the churches and 
museums are supposed to be the work of Italian disciples, 
modelled on that of Byzantine masters. In order to dis- 
tinguish the work at Torcello from the art of Constantinople 
on one hand, and from the Romanesque art common 
throughout Northern and Central Italy on the other, it has 
been known as Italo-Byzantine ; it is the first development 
of a highly cultured native art 

The work in the apse, the doorposts at the western 
entrance, a mutilated carving at the side entrance, and 
perhaps the crosses built into the walls of Sta. Fosca, may 
belong to the ninth century. The screens which divide the 
chancel from the nave in the Duomo may be as late as the 
early part of the twelfth century, but the main fabric of the 
nave, including most of the capitals of the pillars and the 
miscellaneous reliefs and sculptures, is for the most part 
assigned to the period of rebuilding, dating from 1008. It 
would be difficult to point to any other building, on such a 
scale, so homogeneous in style, and interpreting so well the 
lesson which the native artists learned from the masters of 
Constantinople. 

The Interior is full of interest. At the first glance the 
tie-beams running athwart and lengthwise of nave and 



x.] EXCURSIONS 271 

aisles strike one as rude, and the smoothly plastered walls 
are unpleasantly flat. When the eye is used to these 
peculiarities, however, the quality of the place makes itself 
felt. There is a sense of spacious simplicity — of isolation — 
of loneliness. The marbles take a delicate tint of green in 
the humid air. The unwonted meets the eye at every turn, 
whether it be the solemn figure of Madonna in the semi- 
dome, or the Apocalyptic Vision on the western wall, or the 
apse with seats rising tier upon tier, and the Bishop's throne 
in the centre. 

On entering, pass up the Right Aisle. In the small 
semi-dome is a mosaic with the figure of Christ, enthroned 
between the Archangels Michael and Gabriel. Christ has 
the solemn features customary in Byzantine art, but in this 
case there is a want of vigour and benignity. The angels 
wear large earrings, and their robes are jewelled with 
barbaric profusion. Below are the full-length figures of 
Saints Gregory, Martin, Ambrose, and Augustine. 

The roof of the chapel has a charming mosaic, which 
recalls the work upon the roof at St. Vitale in Ravenna. 
The Agnus Dei is surrounded by an aureole upheld by 
angels standing upon blue globes. The interspaces are 
filled with lovely designs in brilliant colours ; among the 
foliage are symbolical birds and the signs of the Evangelists. 
The intention is to suggest the idea of Christ as life giver 
and life restorer. 

Pass into the Choir. 

The terraced seats with the throne in the centre remind 
us that particularly in the Early Church' such things were 
symbolical ; the Bishop seated in the midst of his clergy 
was a figure of Christ in the midst of His Apostles. Above 
the Bishop's chair, under the window, is a mosaic of "Scs. 
Eliodorus, episcopus," whose body rests under the altar. 
Above the semi-dome is an Annunciation, with the Angel to 
the left and Mary to the right. In the semi-dome is the 
Madonna and child, with the Apostles in white robes ranged 
below. The figure of Madonna and Child is characteristic 
in the highest degree of the legacy which the West owes 



272 EXCURSIONS [x. 

to the East. This single design fills the semi-dome ; no 
detail breaks the vast surface except the symbol declaring 
the Motherhood of God. The assertion of the dogma of 
the mysterious link between humanity and Divinity is the 
motive. The mind is not stirred by grace or beauty, the 
purpose is to lift emotion above the range of earth. 

Madonna stands tall, augustly immovable, and majestic ; 
her unfocussed gaze reaches to the confines of Eternity. 
She is robed in blue, touched at the edge with gold. The 
Child on her arm is already oppressed with the sorrow of 
the world. Rigid intensity, an expression austere and in- 
exorable, an impassivity masking the love that moves the 
world, a dignity more than human places this thing apart ; 
the mind is carried beyond the things of time and experience. 

Such obvious defects as unnatural severity of outline, 
disproportion of figure, conventional drapery, only help us 
to realise the intention. 

The Choir is divided from the nave by a fine Screen. 
On the upper part are painted panels, perhaps of the four- 
teenth century, representing Madonna and the Twelve 
Apostles. This is supported by six slender marble columns. 
Note the graceful and delicately carved capitals. The 
spaces between the columns in the lower part are filled with 
four carved panels of great interest. The two outermost, 
from the entrance to the Choir, have the design of a Tree 
with two lion-guardians. Small birds and animals feed upon 
the leaves. 

The two panels nearest to the entrance have peacocks 
drinking from a long-stemmed vase. The animals in all 
these panels lack the vigour and intensity of fine Roman- 
esque art, but the borders, on the other hand, show a true 
sense for decorative effect. Besides these four carved 
panels, there are two others forming part of the screen 
which divides the Choir from the Right Aisle. One of these 
has the symbolical Tree, rigid in stem, with sharply cut 
foliage and birds feeding upon the fruit. This is the most 
successful of these sculptures. Notice the finely carved 
border of braided work. 




Photograph Alina 



MADONNA AND CHILD IN THE CHAPEL OF 

THE ARENA AT PADUA 

By Giovanni Pisano. Early in the Fourteenth Century 

Compare with the Italo-Byzantine Madonna at Torcello 




Photograph : J. W. Cruickshank 

ITALO-BYZANTINE MOSAIC 

Madonna and Child, from the Semi-dome at Torcelt o 
Compare with the Sculpture of Giovanni Pisano in the Chapel of the Arena at Padua 



x.] EXCURSIONS 273 

The carved panels are supposed to be of the same date 
as the rebuilding of the church in 1008. According to 
others they are of the twelfth century. When compared 
with the early Byzantine panels at Ravenna of the sixth 
century, these Italo-Byzantine carvings are clearly the work 
of men who had far less understanding of how to combine 
the gracious freedom of natural forms with necessary con- 
ventions. On the other hand compared with the eleventh- 
century carved screens at Aquileia, these at Torcello show 
an advance in knowledge of natural forms, the animal 
figures are less rude and the decorative effect of the design 
is better. 

To the left of the Choir is a very fine Pulpit, rebuilt in 
the twelfth century from parts of the original material. On 
one side below the Reading Desk is a panel with the usual 
rigid Tree and conventional foliage, framed by elaborate 
borders of braided, twisted, and beaded mouldings. On the 
opposite side, under the stair, is a broken bas-relief. In 
the centre is an allegorical figure of Time winged and 
standing on wheels. 

Notice the beautiful Pavement with marble mosaic 
patterns. 

At the western door is a small Font with rudely carved 
figures. 

The nave pillars have fine capitals with characteristic 
spiny Acanthus foliage. There is a suggestion of Ionic 
forms. On the West Wall is a great mosaic of the Last 
Judgment. It is commonly attributed to the twelfth century, 
but Venturi (" Storia dell' Arte Italiana") assigns it to the ninth 
century. It is probable that the upper and lower parts of 
the picture are not of the same date. The mosaic is not the 
work of a great school. Some Byzantine prototype has been 
well conceived in the mind, but the hand has failed in execu- 
tion. There is no real control of the human figure at rest or 
in motion, and the colouring has none of the harmonious 
charm usual in Byzantine mosaics. 

This Italo-Byzantine Judgment strikes a different plane of 
thought from the fourteenth-century Judgment in the Campo 



274 EXCURSIONS [x. 

Santo at Pisa. Here we have an abstract presentment, a 
general statement ; at the Campo Santo it is the point of 
view of the individual human being, the drama of every man 
in face of the Last Things. Equally different from this 
mosaic is the naive sentiment of Fra Angelico's Judgment 
scenes, or the Cosmical vision of Michael Angelo. 

The Torcello mosaic is a direct narrative, according to 
Jewish and early Christian tradition, as it appears in the 
Prophets, the Gospels, and the Epistles, set down without 
conscious desire of picturesque effect. The expression both 
of the blessed and the damned is dignified and composed. 
Satan is not a monster of grotesque incongruities, but an 
aged man, experienced in the weariness of evil. 

The mosaic is divided into five bands. At the very top is 
Christ on the Cross, between Mary and John. Golgotha 
is represented by a little black mound and a skull. Christ's 
head is inclined to the right, and the eyes are open. 
The feet are nailed separately. Below this is the Descent 
into Hades (see Gospel of Nicodemus, chap. xix). Christ, 
in the centre, treads upon the broken gates of Hell, and 
draws Adam out by the forearm. On the same side as Adam 
stand Eve and two kings. 

On the opposite side, John the Baptist, pointing to Christ, 
and behind him the righteous of the Old Dispensation. At 
each end of the scene is a colossal Archangel, clothed in 
barbarously over-ornamented robes. In the next rank Christ 
is seated on a rainbow (probably suggested by Rev. iv. 3), and 
round about is a mandorla of light. To the spectator's left 
is Madonna, to the right John the Evangelist, the two who 
had stood at the foot of the Cross — who were powerful inter- 
cessors, and who had not awaited the general resurrection. 
Beyond these are seated the Twelve Apostles (Matt. xix. 28). 

In the centre of the range of pictures beneath is the 
" Prepared Throne " (Ps. ix. 7). On a chair of state lies 
the sealed book ; at the back are the instruments of the 
Passion ; at the foot of the throne kneel Adam and Eve. 
The throne is guarded by Seraphim, as in the vision of 
Isaiah vi. 2. To the spectator's right is an angel, who holds 



x.] EXCURSIONS 275 

the scroll, representing the heavens as they are rolled to- 
gether in the dissolution of the things of time (Isa. XXXIV. 4 
and Rev. VI. 14). Further to the right and left the Angels 
sound the trumpets, which call the quick and dead to judg- 
ment (1 Cor. xv. 52). The dead are given up, on the right 
hand, by the sea (Rev. xx. 13), and on the left by wild beasts, 
perhaps a reminiscence (cf. Ps. XXII. 21). 

The next range of pictures is on a level with the top 
of the arch over the door. In the centre, Michael is seen 
preparing to weigh souls ; he holds the scales, while oppo- 
site to him devils, with the purses of the avaricious, prepare 
to thrust down their side with spears. 

The tradition of the weighing may have been based on 
such passages as Psalm LXH. 9, Proverbs XVI. 2, and 
Daniel V. 27. Michael is associated with the awakening 
of the dead in Daniel xn. 1-3. To the spectator's left of 
Michael there is the general assembly of the first-born 
of the Church, who appear in separate groups, a division 
probably founded on the distinction of services and gifts 
which St. Paul repeats in Romans XII. 5-8, 1 Corinthians 
XII. 2S, and Ephesians IV. 11. To the spectator's right of 
the devils, who represent the spirit of evil at the weigh- 
ing of souls, two angels thrust sinners into the flames 
(Matthew XIII. 41), which are fed from the river of fire 
coming down from Christ's throne (Daniel VII. 10). In 
the middle of the flames, Lucifer is seated with Dives in his 
lap. 

In the lowest range, to the spectator's left, are the souls 
of the blessed in Abraham's bosom (Luke XVI. 22). Then 
Mary in prayer and the Penitent Thief with his cross 
(Luke xxill. 43 and the Gospel of Nicodemus XX. 5-12). 
Between this figure and that of St. Peter is the Gate of 
Paradise guarded by the Cherubim (Gen. III. 24). The 
scenes to the right of the door in the lowest range are 
of uncertain import. The skulls in which worms twine in 
and out (Isa. LVI. 24 and Mark IX. 44) suggest that they 
represent a continuation of the torments of hell. 

On leaving the Duomo, walk round to the west front. 



276 EXCURSIONS [x. 

The lintel and jambs of the door are of marble, with ela- 
borate carving, attributed to 864. The vine-leaf ornament 
on the lintel is in freer style than the work on the jambs. 
Opposite to the west door are the ruins of an ancient 
Baptistery which may have dated from the seventh century. 
A picturesque, covered arcade connects this ruin with the 
Duomo and Sta. Fosca. It has stilted arches, and many of 
the capitals of the columns are finely carved but much 
weathered. 

STA. FOSCA. 

This was originally a basilican church of the ninth 
century, partly rebuilt in 1008 on the model of the later 
Greek churches. There are three apses. The centre one 
has two rows of blind arcades with ornamental brickwork 
above, similar in character but less elaborate than the brick- 
work at the cathedral of Murano. At the top is a Byzantine 
cornice with some classical detail. The style of the arcading 
is said to place the date of the building at the beginning of 
the twelfth century, between the refounding of San Marco 
and the rebuilding of the Duomo of Murano. 

Interior. The detached columns were intended to sup- 
port a dome, a circular base being attained by throwing 
arches across the angles. The dome, however, was never 
constructed, and the church is covered with a timber roof. 

The columns are of grey marble, and the capitals with 
clean, sharp carving, Italo-Byzantine in style, have red marble 
abaci. 

On the wall outside, beside the door are two carved panels 
with crosses of the ninth century. 



The Museums. 

In the Museo Provinciale there is a fine vase with leafage 
ornament and the Cross, and a Greek inscription. 

There are also collections of coins, coats-of-arms, banners 
of Sta. Fosca ; a Paliotto, formerly in the Duomo, with small 
bronze plaques nailed on wood, perhaps of the ninth century. 

In the centre case are a few books and manuscripts. 



x.] EXCURSIONS 277 

The principal interest of these museums is the collection 
of carvings and sculpture, which was done by Italians 
working under Byzantine influence. 

Downstairs there are many interesting sculptured frag- 
ments, mostly of the Gothic and Renaissance period. 

In one of the side rooms are some beautiful examples of 
Italo-Byzantine work. One panel presents a contrast by 
means of symbolical animals. In the upper part two pea- 
cocks drink from a vase, a figure of the immortal soul 
receiving life from the Chalice. In the lower part a lion 
devours a young fawn, a figure of the soul in the power of 
Satan. 

The Museo Estuario, in the centre of the room is a 
painted vase, Greek or Etruscan. In two cases there are a 
number of small bronze lamps, vases, etc. On the walls are 
fragments of panels, a crucifix, a Pieta in relief, and a few 
statues in wood. 

In the courtyard below there is an interesting collection 
of Italo-Byzantine carvings, fragments of scrolls with vine 
leafage, birds and animals feeding. 

There are also some wellheads, and a few fragments of 
classical sculptures. 

MURANO. 

The island of Murano may be reached by the steamboats 
which start every fifteen minutes from the Fondamenta 
Nuova. By gondola, going from and returning to the hotel, 
the excursion takes from three to four hours, allowing time 
for the monuments. 

Taking the course outside of the Island we pass several 
glass factories, sulphur-works, and shipbuilding yards. On 
the sky-line appear the outlines of S. Francesco in Deserto, 
Burano and Torcello, swimming on the sunny levels of 
water. 

We enter a quiet deserted-looking Canal, pass the old 
cemetery, and land under a picturesque bridge at the 
Duomo (Santi Maria e Donato). 



273 EXCURSIONS [x. 

The Church is a Romanesque building. The application 
of open arcades round the apse shows a development of the 
same style as may be seen on the apse of Sta. Fosca, Tor- 
cello. (Rivoira, " Origini della Archit : Lombarda.") It is 
supposed that the building was remodelled after the great 
earthquake in 1117, and finished about 1140, the date given 
on the pavement inside. 

The Apse, low and massive, with its two rows of open 
arcades and picturesque ornamental brickwork between, is 
very striking. The columns have cushion capitals, and to 
the extreme right and left are delicately carved panels with 
geometrical and foliage designs. Each part adds to the 
effectiveness of the whole : all is in harmony. The building 
is a noteworthy example of the treatment of brickwork. 

Turn to the left, past the solid mass of the square Cam- 
panile. Notice on the South Wall of the Church two 
carved panels with the Cross and Trees. Between the 
panels is the bust of an angel, and, below, a monstrous head 
bitten by dragons, a symbolical design perhaps intended for 
Heaven and Hell. 

The Western facade is plain, with a small relief of S. 
Donato and a kneeling figure. S. Donato, whose relics are 
preserved in the Church, was a Bishop of Epirus who freed 
his people from a dragon. His body was brought from 
Cephalonia to Venice early in the twelfth century, by Doge 
Domenico Michieli, after a victory over the Saracens. 

Interior. The great glory of the Church is the mosaic 
pavement. The subjects represented in coloured marbles 
are those familiar in Italo-Byzantine art : peacocks drinking 
from a vase, griffins confronting each other, and the fable of 
the hens carrying the fox to burial. In the nave is a circular 
design with an inscription and the date 1140. 

The Capitals of the nave columns have many of the 
forms usual in Italo-Byzantine architecture. The Pulpit is 
of light grey marble, the panels are carved with simple 
crosses. 

In the semi-dome of the apse is a striking Mosaic with 
the solitary figure of the Madonna on an unbroken back- 



x.] EXCURSIONS 279 

ground of gold. She is draped in dark blue and her arms 
are outstretched in prayer. She resembles in this respect 
the "Orante" in early Christian art, and like them she is 
probably a figure of the Church. The mosaic is said to be 
of the twelfth century. 

In the left aisle, over the door, is a Madonna and Child, 
with SS. Donato and John the Baptist, by Lazzaro 
Sebastiani. 

Further on is a coloured relief of S. Donato of the four- 
teenth century. 

In the side Chapel there are interesting fragments of 
Italo-Byzantine carving ; a baptismal font for total immer- 
sion ; and the sculptured front of a sarcophagus with the 
"star" or "girandole" ornament, said by Venturi to be 
characteristic of the eighth century. 

On the wall beyond is a Paliotto ascribed to the 
Vivarini. 

On the wall to the left of the S. entrance is a Byzantine 
Madonna, her blue robe and veil covered with stars. Near 
the southern door is a Holy-water Font, resting on a carved 
classical pillar. 

Museo Civico. 

This museum contains an interesting collection, illus- 
trating the local industry of glass making. The glass- 
works were transferred from Venice to Murano in the 
thirteenth century. The peculiar characteristics of Vene- 
tian glass are lightness, thinness, and elegance of form. 

Etitrance Hall. A beautiful Italo-Byzantine sarcophagus. 
On the upper walls are fragments of sculpture. Note a 
fine dragon opposite to the entrance. Over the left door 
is a Gothic relief. 

Mount the stairs, and enter a fine hall with Chandeliers 
and Tapestries on the walls. Beyond are rooms with 
mirrors, chandeliers, and specimens of glass. 

Murano for a long period had a monopoly in the making 
of beads and mirrors, and the industry did not decline 
until the eighteenth century with the invention of flint glass 



280 EXCURSIONS [x. 

and the development of the manufacture in England and 
Germany. 

In a small room to the left is the Golden Book of Murano, 
containing the names of the members of the Guild of glass- 
workers. 

A collection of Spanish and Bohemian glass in another 
room enables one to make a comparison with the Murano 
work exhibited on the ground floor. 



San Pietro Martire. 

This church is within a few minutes' reach of the Museum ; 
it contains one of Giovanni Bellini'' s most serene altar-pieces. 
The Madonna is a dignified woman, gazing over the head 
of the kneeling Doge Barbarigo with Olympian calm and 
genial serenity. There is an air of space and light in the 
picture, lacking in those of Bellini's altar-pieces, which have 
heavy architectural backgrounds. The Doge, in spite of 
his attitude, has no expression of devotional reverence ; and 
the angel musicians add to the general air of complacent 
well-being. The bishop on the right, in heavy ecclesiastical 
robes of ceremony, is a lifeless figure. 

Note also the following pictures : — 

St. Jerome, to the right of the entrance door. On the 
opposite wall, an Assumption of the Virgin, by some 
scholar of Bellini. In the chapel to the L. of the choir, 
a Pietk. Over the Sacristy door, a Baptism, attributed to 
Tintoretto ; and on the R. of the Choir, a Supper at Cana, 
attributed to Veronese. 



LIST OF SOME OF THE PRINCIPAL PAINTERS, 

INTERESTING TO VISITORS IN VENICE, 

WITH THEIR APPROXIMATE DATES. 



Maestro Paolo, living between 
Lorenzo Veneziano, known between 
Niccolo Semitecolo, lived until . 
Jacobello del Fiore, known between 
Michele Giambono, known between 
Jacopo Bellini, died about 
Antonio da Murano, still alive in 
Quirico da Murano, still alive in 
Antonello da Messina, known between 
Carlo Crivelli .... 
Bartolommeo Vivarini, worked between 
Rondinelli, died about 
Andrea da Murano, known between 
Alvise Vivarini .... 1445 
Gentile Bellini .... 
Marco Marziale, known between 

Giorgione 

Lazzaro Sebastiano 
Giovanni Bellini .... 
Cima da Conegliano . 
Marco Basaiti, lived up to . 
Vittore Carpaccio, died 
Benedetto Diana, known between 
Rocco Marconi, known up to 
Palma Vecchio .... 

Mansueti 

Vincenzo di Biagio (Catena), died 
Pordenone . . 



1338 
1357 

1400 
1420 



1463 



43o 



1450 



or 6? — 
1427? 
1492 
1477 or 8 

• 1449 
1428? 

460 ? — 1 



1483 

1480? 
1470? 

1483 



and 1358 

and 1379 

1400 

and 1439 

and 1462 

1464 

1470 

1478 

and 1493 

- 1495? 

and 1499 

1500 

and 1502 

1502-3? 

— 1507 
and 1507 

— 1511 

— 1512 
• — 1516 

517 or 18 
1521 
1525 

and 1525 
1526 

— 1528 

— i53o 
1531 
1538 



281 



282 SOME OF THE PRINCIPAL PAINTERS 

Bonifazio 

Cariani ..... 

Sebastiano del Piombo 
Pellegrino da San Daniele . 

Savoldo 

Bissolo, died .... 

Lorenzo Lotto .... 

Moretto 

Schiavone 

Paris Bordone .... 
Titian, date of birth in controversy 
Moroni ..... 

Paolo Veronese .... 
Jacopo Bassano . 
Tintoretto ..... 



1490 


— 1540 


1480 


- 1541 


1485 


— 1547 


460-70 


— 1547 


1508? 


- 1548 




1554 


476 — 


[55501-6 


1498 


- 1555 


1522 


— 1563 


1500 


— 1570 




1576 


1525 


- 1578 


1528 


— 1588 


1510 


— 1592 


I5IQ 


— 1594 



APPENDIX 

LATIN INSCRIPTIONS OF THE FACADE AND 
ATRIUM OF ST. MARK'S.' 

Facade. 

Over the Mosaic of the Reception of the Body. 

Corpore suscepto gaudent modulamine recto ; 
Currentes latum venerantur honore locatum. 

Over the Thirteenth-century Mosiac. 

Col local hicne dignis plebs laudibus et colit hymnis, 
Ut Veneios semper scrvet ab hoste suos. 

Over the lunettes above. 

i. De cruce descendo, sepcliri cum nece tendo j Quae 
mca sit vita, Jam surgam morte relita (relicta). 

2. Visitat infernum regnum pro dando supermini 
Patribus antiquis, dimissis Christus iniquis. 
Quis, fractis portis, spoliat me campio fort is ? 

3. Crimina qui purgo triduo de morte resurgo, 
Et me cum multi dudum rediere sepulti. 
E11 verus fort is qui f regit vincula mortis. 

4. Sum victor mortis, regno super aeihera foriis, 
Plausibus angelicis, laudibus et melicis. 

Atrium. 
Over the main door. 

A lapis Marce delicta precantibus arce, 
Ut surgant per te y factore suo miser-ante. 
283 



284 APPENDIX 

Lunette. 
Sponsa Deo gigno natos ex Virgine Virgo^ 
Quos fragiles firmo fortes super sEthera mitto. 

Round the Evangelists. 
Ecclesiae Chris ti vigiles sunt quatuor isti, 
Quorum dulce melos sonat et movet undique coelos. 

First Division. 

In p7'incipio crcavit Deus coelum et terrain. — Spiritus 
Domini ferebatur super aquas.- — Appellavitque lucem diem 
et tenebras noctem. — Fiat fir mament um in medio aquarum. 

Fiant luminaria in firmame?ito coeli. Dixit etiam Do- 
minus : producant aquae reptile animae viventis et volatile 
uper terrain ; jumenta et omnia reptilia in genere suo. 

Faciamus hominem ad imaginem et similiticdinem nostram. 
— Et bene dixit diei septimo. — Ei inspiravit in faciem ejus 
spiraculum vitae. — Etiam posuit in medio paradisi (lignum 
vitae) lignumque scientiae. 

Appellavitque Adam nominibus suis cuncta animantia. — 
Cumque obdormissel, tulit imam de costis ejus et replevit 
carnem pro ea, et adduxit earn ad Adam. — Hie serpens 
loquitur Evae et decipit earn. — Hie Eva accipit pomum et 
dat viro suo. — Hie Adam et Eva cooperiicnt se foliis. — Hie 
Dominus vocat Adam et Evam latentes se post arbor es. 
— Hie Dominus increpat Adam. — Ipse monstrat uxorem 
fuisse causam. — Hie Dominus maledicit serpenti cum Adam 
et Eva ante se existentibus. — Hie Dominus vestit Adam et 
Evam. — Hie expellit eos de paradiso. — Hie incipiunt labo- 
rare. 

Round the Cherubim in the pendentives. 

Hie ardet Cherubin Christi flammata calore, 
Semper et aeterni solis radiala nitore. 
Mystica slant Cherubim alas monstrantia senas, 
Quae Dominum laudant, voces promendo serenas. 

At the end. 
Crescite et multiplicamini et replete terrain. 
Hie peperit. 
Christus Abel cernitj Kayn et sua muner^a spernit. 



APPENDIX 285 

Egrcdiamur foras. Cumque essent in ag7"0, co?isurrexit 
Cain adversus fratrem snum et iniei-fecit euvi. 

Dixtique Dominus ad Cam : quid fecisti ? Ecce vox 
sanguinis fratris tui clamat ad me de terra. 

Dixitque Cain ad Dominum : major est iniquitas mea 
quam ut veniam mercar. 

Second Division. 

Dixitque Do?ninus ad Noe : Fac tibi arcam de /ignis levi- 
gatis : t?-ecentorum cubitorum erit lo?igitudo arcae, quinqua- 
ginta cubitorum erit latitudo et triginta erit altitudo i/lius. 
— Tulit ergo Noe de ani/nantibus et de voluc7'ibus, mundis ct 
immundis, et ex omni quod move tier super ter?-am, duo et duo, 
masculum et feminam, ct ingrcssi sunt ad cum in arcam si cut 
fi?-aecefie?'at ei Dominus. — In articulo Did ing7'essus est Noe, 
Sem, Cham ct Japhet, filii ejus et icxores filiorum ejus, cum 
eis in arcam. Factumque est diluvium quadraginta diebus 
super te7-ramet qui7idecim cubiiis altiorf nit aqua super monies. 
— Cumque consumpta esset omnis caro super terrain, emisit 
Noe columbam. — At ilia venit ad eu?7i poi'tans 7-a7nu7n olivae 
i7i ore et i7itellexit Noe quod cessassent aquae diluvii. — Pona77i 
arcimi i7i nubibus et erit in signutn foedei'is ut non sint ultra 
aquae diluvii. — Noe obtulit holocaushnn Do7nino post dilu- 
viiwi. 

Third Division. 

Noe, post exitu7ii arcae de diluvio, plantavit vinca7n, bi- 
bensque vinu77i inebriatus est et nudatus in tabe7'naculo suo. 
Quod cu77i vidisset Cha77i pater Chanaa/t vere7ida patris sui 
esse nudata, 7iunciavit duobus suis fratribus foris; at ve7'0 
Se77i et Japhet paliinn i77iposuerunt himieris suis et incedentes 
rctrorsu77i coope7'uerimt vereiida patris sui, facie77ique eoriaii 
aversae erant et Patris virilia non vidc7~U7it. — Evigila7is 
aute77i Noe ex vino, cum didicisset quae fecerat ei filius suus 
77iinor, ait: 7tialedictus Chanaan servus servo7'U77i erit fra- 
tribus suis. — Dies aute7n Noe 7ionge7itoru7n qui7iquaginta 
winorwn et mortuus est. 

Post morte7n vero Noe dixermtt gentes : venite facia7nus 



286 APPENDIX 

nodi's civitatem et turrim cujus culmen pertingat ad coelum. 
Quod intuens Dominies, ail : venite videre civitatejn et tur- 
rim quam aedificant filii Adam et dixit ecce units est populus 
et uniim labium omnibus, venite et descendantus et confunda- 
mus linguam eorum ut non audiat unusquisque vocem proxi- 
mi sui. At que ita divisit cos Dominus ex illo loco in uni- 
versas terras et cessaverunt aedificare turrim. 

Fourth Division. 

Dixitque Dominus ad Abram : Egredei'e de terra tua et 
veni in teri'am quam monstravero tibi; tulitque uxorem 
suam ct Loth filium fratris sui ut irent in terrain Chanaan. 
— Scptuaginta quoque aii?iorum erat Abram, cum egreder- 
eturde Aran. — Cum audisset Abram cap turn Loth, numeravit 
trecenlos decern et octo expeditos vernaculos et persecutus est 
eos ; et reduxit Loth et omnem substantiam. — At vero Mel- 
chisedech 7'ex Salem proferens panem et vinum, erat enim 
sacerdos Dei altissimi, bene dixit ei. — Dixitque rex Sodom- 
orum ad Abram : Da mihi animas et coetera tolle tibi. Qui 
respondit ei : Levo manum meam ad Dominum Deum excel- 
sum possessorem coeli et terrae. — Ingredere ad ancillam meam 
si forte saltern ex ilia suscipiam filios. — Dixitque angel us 
Domini ad A%ar ancillam Sarai : Reveriere ad dominam 
tuam. — Peperitque Agar Abrae filium qui vocavit nomen 
eius Ismael. — Dixit Dominus : Ne ultra vocabitur nomen 
tuum Abrani sed Abraham. Dixit iterum Dominus ad 
Abraham : circumcidite ex vobis omne masculinum et cir- 
cumcidetis carnem preputii vest?'i. Infans octo dierum 
circumcidetur in vobis. 

About the Prophets. 

Annunciate in gentibus ei audit um facite, levate signum, 

praedicate et nolite celare. 
Ecce vir cinctus lineis et re?us eius accincti auro obrizo. 
Filios enutrivi et exaltavi, ipsi vero sprevcrunt me. 
Linguam tuam adhaei'ere faciam palato tuo, quia domus 

exas-berans. 



APPENDIX 287 

At the sides. 

Cum sederet in ostio tabemaculi sui, apparuerunt ei tres 
viri et adoravit et dixit. 

Tulitque buiyrum et lac et vitulum quern coxerat, et posuit 
coram eis ; et ipse stabat juxta eos sub arbore. Cui dixit : 
Revertens verdant ad te tempore isto, et habebit filium Sara 
uxor tuaj quae risit post ostium tabemaculi. 

Visitavit autem Dominus Saram, sicut promiserat, et im- 
plevit quae locutus est; concepitque, et peperit ei filium in 
se?iectute sua, tempore quo praedixerat ei Deus. Vocavitque 
Abraham nomen ejus Ysaac. Et circumcidit eum octavo 
die. 

Over the arch. 

Signal Abram Christum, qui, gentis spretor hebraee 
Transiit ad genles, et sibi junxit eas. 

Fifth Division. 
Hie vidit Joseph somnium manipulorum et soils et lunae 
et undecim stellar um. — Hie Joseph narrat Jratribus suis 
somnium. — Hie pater eius increpavit cum de 7iarratio?ie 
so m nil. — Hie Joseph missus erravit i?i agro et vidit virum 
icnum etinterrogavit eum de Jratribus suis. — Ecce somniator 
venit : occidamus eum. — Hie Joseph mittitur in cisternam, et 
comedentibus Jratribus, viderimt mercatores venire. — Hie 
extraxerunt eum de cisterna. — Hie vendiderunt Joseph 
Hismaelitis XX argenteis. — Hie ducitur Joseph in AZgyptum 
a mercatoribus. — Hie Rube?i non invenit Joseph in cisterna. 
— Hie est denuntiatio mortis Joseph, et Jacob pater eius 
plorat. 

About the Prophets. 

[Qui] honorificaverit me, honorificabo eum [qui] contemnent 
me, ego abjiciain, dicit Dominus. 

Melior est obedientia quam victimaej super bonos delecta- 
tur Dominus et no?i super sacrificia. 

Haec dicit Dominus : non recedet gladius de domo tua in 
sempiternum. Ecce suscitabo super te malum de domo tua. 
. . . In judicium posuisti eum; et Joi'tem ut corripe?rs, 
fundasti. 



288 APPENDIX 

Intrent securi, veniam quia sunt habituri 
Omnes conjessi qui non sunt crimine pressi. 

Under the arch. 
Radix omnium bo?iorum charitas. 
Ch?istopJio?'i sancti speciem quicumque tuetur, 
Wo nempe die nullo languore tenetur. 

£ixth Division. 

Hie Hismaelitae vendunt Joseph Putiphar eunuch o Pha- 
raonis in sEgypto. — Hie Eunuchus tradit omnia bona sua in 
pot estate Joseph. — Hie dicit uxor Putiphar Joseph : dormi 
meeum. — Hie Joscpli relicto pallio in manu mulieris fugit. — 
Hie mulier videns se delusam, ostendit pallium Joseph omni- 
bus de domo sua. — Hie Putiphar ponit Joseph in carcere. — 
Hie Pharao jubet poni in carcere pinccmam et pistorem. — 
Hie pince?'?ia et pis tor existentes in carcei'e vident somnia. — 
Hie Josejih interpretatus est pificernae et pis tori somnia quae 
viderunt. 

Hie Pharao restituit pincernam in officium suum. — Hie 
Pharao pistorem Jecit suspendi in patibulo. — Hie Pharao 
vidit per somnium sepiem boves pingues et septem macras 
C07ijectas, et macrae devoraverunt pingues. 

Hie vidit per somnium septem spicas in culmo uno plenas 
et Jormosas, et alias septem spicas te?iues et vacuas, quae 
devoraverunt priores plenas. — Hie Pharao quaerit interpre- 
tationem somjiiorum a sapientibus suis . — Hie pincerna dicit 
Pharaoni qualiter Joseph dixerat sibi et pis tori eventum 
sonmiorum suorum. 

Sonmia quae vidit Pharao Joseph reseravit : 
Collegit segetes, populis quas participavit. 

Seventh Division. 
Hie Jacob praecepit decern filiis suis ut irent in AUgyplinn 
causa emendi Jrume?itum.— Hie Joseph co?igregavit Jratres 
suos et dure loquens eis posuit custodiae tribus diebus. — Hie 
Jratres Joseph loquuti sunt invicem : merito haec pati?nur % 
quia peccavimus in Jratrem nostrum. Et Joseph avertit 
se et planxit. — Hie Joseph iussit Simeon ligari Jratribus 



APPENDIX 289 

praesentibus, et pccuniam singulorum reddi. — Hie Joseph 
redactas segetes in manipulos jussit congregari in ho7'rea 
JEgypti. — Hie Ascenes, uxor Joseph, peperit Ephraim 
secundum filium. — Hie populus clamavit ad Pharaonem 
alimejita petensj quibus respondit : ite ad Joseph. — Hie 
aperuit Joseph Iwrea immensa, et vendebat sEgyptiis. 

Hie Jacob mittit Beitiamin cum aliis Jiliis suis in 
JEgyptum. — Evacuantes saccos Jrumento, receperunt pecu- 
niam in ore suo. — Hie Joseph recipit Beniamin fratrem 
suum uterinum. 

Ut Deus hie parcat tumulatis, qui iegis, ora : 
Et te salvabit si sanctos ejus honoras. 

Eighth Division. 

Hie filia Pharaonis jubet tolli infantulum Moysen de 
flumine. — Hie Moyses virum AUgyptium percutientem He- 
brae nm occidit et abscondit sabulo. — Hie Moyses, alter die, 
drearguens Hebraeum facientem injuriam alteri, audivit : 
Numquid occidere tu me vis ? Et timuit et ivit in terram 
Madian. — Hie filiae sacei'dotis Madiam venerunt adaquare 
greges patris. — Hie Moyses, defensis puellis de manu pas- 
torum, adaquavit oves earum. — Hie juravit Moyses habitare 
cum sacerdote Madian. — Hie Moyses veniens ad mo?item 
Oreb vidil rubum ardentem et non comburebatur ; et solvit 
calceamentum de pedibus. 

Mane pluit manna, cecidit quoque sero coturnix; 

Bis silicem Jerit, hinc affluit largissima plebi. 

Over the end door. 

Supp licet, o Chris te, pro nobis Virgo Maria, 
Evangelistae simul hii duo, summa Sophia. 



INDEX 



Abraham, story of, in mosaics, 53 
Academy, the, 169 to 222 
Adam and Eve, 83, 88, 182 
Alexander the Great legend, 26 
Alexander III, Pope, 232, 236 
Allemagna, Giov. d', 104, 145, 

176, 220 
Altars in St. Mark's, 56, 57. 58 
Altinum, 1, 2 
Alvise, church of San, 167 
Annunciation, the, 20. 21, 177, 

194 . . 
Antiquities, 6 

Apostles, the, 27, 35, 45, 71 
Archaeological Museum, 242 
Arsenal, 267 
Assumption, Titian's, 181 ; 

Veronese's, 195 ; Palma's, 199 
Astronomical signs, 83 
Atrium of St. Mark's, 29 

Bacchus and Ariadne, by Tin- 
toretto, 226 
Baldacchino, 58 
Baptistery, the, of St. Mark's, 42 

to 48 
Barbara, St., 126 
Basaiti Marco, 97, 183, 189, 

215, 264 
Bassano, 232, 236 
Bellini, Gentile, 170, 203, 204, 

264 
Bellini, Giovanni, 113, 123, 124, 

142, 143. 1 SS, 171, 183, 218 

to 220, 264, 280 
Bellini, Jacopo, 219 
Bissolo, 163, 189 
Boccaccino, 215 
Body of St. Mark, 9, 11, 13. 18, 

49, 58. 72 
Books about St. Mark's, 16 
Bonifazio, 123, 154, 196, 199, 

200, 201 



Bordone, Paris, 152, 197 
Bridge of Sighs, 87 
Bronzes, collection of, 242, 243 
Bronze horses, 17 
Browning, house of, 248 
Buon, the family of, 85, 90 
Busts, collection of, 242 
Byron, house of, 258 
Byzantine palaces, 7, 77, 78 
Byzantine period, 7 
Byzantine- Romanesque, 13 
Byzantine sculpture, 21, 25, 69 
Byzantine Venice, 11 to 77 

Ca' d'Oro, 254 

Cain and Abel, mosaics of, 31, 

32 
Campagna, 106, 119, 161 
Camponato, 50 
Campanile of St. Mark's, the, 

92 
Canal, the Grand, 245 to 261 
Canova, tomb of, 112 
Capitals of the Ducal Palace, 

82,85 
Carmini, church of, I, 103 
Carpaccio, Vittore, 147, 149, 

182, 187, 205, 207, 209, 264 
Catena, Vincenzo, 149, 154,214 
Caterina, Sta., church of, 157 
Catherine, Saint, 10, 143, 153, 

157 
Cathedral, the former, 167 
Cassiano, S., church of, 153 
Ceilings, carved and painted, 

103, 120, 226, 229, 231, 239 
Chair of St. Mark, 75 
Chapels— of St. Clement, 65 ; 

of the Holy Sacrament, 57 ; 

of St. Isidore, 52 ; dei Mascoli, 

51 ; of Our Lady, 55 ; of San 

Tarasio, 144 ; Zen, 48 to 50 
Christopher, baint, 25, 28, 34 



292 



INDEX 



Churches— Carmini, I, 103 ; 
Cassiano, S., 153; Caterina, 
Sta., 157 ; Francesco della 
Vigna, S., 141 ; Frari, I, 
104; Gesuiti, I, 157 ; Giobbe, 
S., 164 ; Giorgio degli Schia- 
voni, S., 146; Giorgio dei 
Greci, S., 151 ; Giorgio Mag- 
giore, S., 159 ; Giovanni 
Crisostomo, S., 124; Gio- 
vanni e Paolo, SS., 127 ; 
Giovanni in Bragora, S., 152 ; 
Gregorio, S., 246 ; Madonna, 
dell' Orto, 155 ; Maria dei 
Miracoli, Sta., 125; Maria 
Mater Domini, Sta., 154; 
Maria Formosa, Sta., 126; 
Maria della Salute, Sta., 95 ; 
Marcilliano, S., 158, Panta- 
leone, S., 104 ; Pietro di 
Castello, S., 13, 167 ; Reden- 
tore, 162 ; Rocco, S., 121 ; 
Salvatore,S.,i23; Sebastiano, 
S., 100; Toma, San, 113; 
Trovaso, S., 99; Zaccaria, 
S., 142 
Cima da Conegliano, 103, 134, 

138, 152, 155, 185, 216, 217 
Clock tower, the, 90 
Coins, collection of, 243 
Colleoni, Bartolommeo, 129 
Colour, Venetian love of, 6 
Columns of the Piazzetta, 76 
Commerce, Venetian, 5, 8 
Contarini, Doge Domenico, 12 
Constantinople, 5, 
Conversazione, Santa, 125, 190, 

196, 217 
Correr Museum, 262 to 268 
Costumes, Venetian, 266 
Creation, mosaics of the, 30 
Crisostomo, S., Giov., church of, 

124 
Crivelli, Carlo, 213 
Cross, the True, 203, 204 
Crusades, the, 5, 76 
Crypt of St. Mark's, 57, 76 
Cunc incriptions, 168 

Dandolo, Andrea, 42, 43 ; tomb 
of, 47 



Dandolo, Enrico, Doge, 5, 238, 
256 

Demetrius, Saint, 20, 21 

Diana, Benedetto, 188, 205 

Doges, the, 3 

Doge's palace, origin, 4 ; ex- 
terior, 78 to 89 ; courtyard, 
87 ; interior, 223 to 244 

Dogana di Mare, the, 245 

Domes of St. Mark's, 15, 16, 
38, 62, 68, 69, 70, 72 

Dominican church, 127 

Donatello, 115, 126 

Donato, San, 278, 279 

Don Carlos, house of, 247 

Doorways of St. Mark's, 22, 
67 

Ducal chapel, the, 11 

Dungeons, the, 244 

Duomo Torcello, 270 ; Murano, 
277 

Duse, house of, 246 

Eastern art, 5 
Eastern saints, 6 
Etruscan element, 1 
Evangelists, 20, 26, 58 
Excursions, 269 to 280 

Facades of St. Mark's— western, 

17 ; northern, 25 ; southern, 

28 
Falier, Doge Vitale, tomb of, 32 
" Fede", the, by Titian, 225 
Flagstaffs, 17, 92 
Flemish pictures, 191 
Fondaco dei Turchi, 252 
Fondaco dei Tedeschi, 255 
Font, the, St. Mark's, 43, 46 
Fosca, Santa, church of, 276 
Foscari, Doge Francesco, 85, 

109 
Fra Antonio da Negroponte, 141 
Francesco della Vigna, church 

of, 141 
Franciscans, the, 105, 141, 162, 

164, 200 
Frari, church of the, 104 
Friars' Churches, the, 104, 127 
Friuli, painters of, 104, 190 



INDEX 



293 



Gallery of St. Mark's, 66 
George, Saint, 10, 21, 147, 148, 

159,213,231 
Geremia, San, church of, 253 
German influence, 146, 176 
Gesuiti, I, church of, 157 
Giambono, Michel, 51, 176 
Giobbe, San, church of, 164 
Giorgio dei Greci, San, church 

of, 151 
Giorgio degli Schiavoni, San, 

church of, 146 
Giorgio Maggiore, 159 
Giorgione, 122 
Giovanni Allemagna, 104, 176, 

220 
Giovanni Crisostomo, San, 124 
Giovanni e Paolo, church of, 

127 
Giovanni in Bragora, San, 152 
Giovanni Elemosinario, San, 

church of, 153 
Girolamo da Treviso, 97, 126 
Giudecca, the, 162, 163, 164 
Glass, Venetian, 265, 279 
Gothic churches, 131 ; St. 

Mark's, 12, 19, 28 
— period, 7 ; Venice, 78 to 89 
Gradenigo, Uoge Bartolommeo, 

34. 
Granite columns, 76 
Greek art, 5, 6, 151 
Greek ritual, 151 
Greek influence, 6 
Greek lions, 267 
Greek pillars, 28 
Greek spoils, 6 
Gregorio, San, monastery of, 

246 

Hermagoras, oishop of Aquileja, 

Herodias, mosaics, 44 
Hierarchies of Angels, 45, 235 
Horses, the bronze, 17, 67 
Huns, the, 2 

Isidore, Saint, legend of, 53 
Italo-Byzantine sculpture, 22, 

262, 270, 273, 277, 279 
Ivories, 243, 265 



Jacobello del Fiore, 78, 175 
Jerome, St., 97, 100, 149, 150 
Job, 164 

John the Baptist, mosaics of, 43 
John the Evangelist, 39, 52 ; 

mosaics, 70 
John and Paul, Roman saints, 

128 
Joseph, history of, mosaics, 33, 

34, 35 
Judgment, the Last, 18, 67, 

155, 156, 240, 273 



Lagoons, the, 2 
Latin Doctors, 27, 46 
Leonard, Saint, 26, 39, 73 
Leopardi, Alessandro, 50, 92, 

112, 130, 136 
Lepanto, battle of, 229 
Liberia Vecchia, the, 91 
Library in Doge's palace, 241 
Lido, the, 2 
Lions, Greek, 267 
Lion, winged, the, 9, 19, 77, 91 
Lombardi, the, 50, 107, 130, 

132, 142, 166, 242, 258 
Lotto Lorenzo, 103, 134, 138 

Madonna, chapel of the, 55 ; 
portrait of, 55 ; legend of the, 
70; of the Frari, 113; the 
"Pesaro," 114; of Torcello, 
271 

Madonna dell' Orto, church of, 

155 
Malamocco, 3, 4 
Manin, Daniele, monument of, 

25 
Mansueti, 187, 205, 207 
Mantegna, 213 
Manuscripts, illuminated, 241, 

264 
Maps, collection of, 242 
Marciliano, San, church of, 158 
Maria dei Miracoli, Sta., church 

of, 125 
Maria Formosa, Sta., church of, 

126 
Maria Mater Domini, Sta,, 

church of, 154 



294 



INDEX 



Mark, Saint, 9, II, 13, 18, 38, 

49, 63, 65, 72, 197 
Mark's, St., church of, 11 to 

77 ; exterior, 14 to 29 ; west 

front, 17 ; north, 25 ; south, 

28 ; atrium, 29 ; interior, 36 ; 

galleries, 66 ; treasury, 75 ; 

presbytery, 58 
Massegne, the, 56, 58, 106, 

in 
Medals, 243, 266 
Merceria, the, 91 
Michiel, Doge Domenico, 53, 

54, 77 
Monastery of S. Gregorio, the, 

99 
Montagna, Bartolommeo, 188 
Morosini, tomb of Doge, 135 
Moretto, 152 
Mosaics of St. Mark's, 361074; 

Murano, 278; Torcello, 271, 

273 
Motto, the Venetian, 19, 84 
Murano, 9, 277 to 280 
Museums— the Correr, 262 to 

268 ; Murano, 279 ; Torcello, 

276 

Negroponte, Fra Antonio da. 

141 
Nicholas, St., io, 28, 63 
Noah, mosaics of, 32 
Nuova Fabbrica, 94 

Oriental influence, 5, 14 
Orseolo, Doge Pietro, 46, 60 

Palace, the Ducal, 78 to 89, ex.- 
terior ; 223 to 244 interior 

Palaces of the Grand Canal, 
246, 261 

Pala d'Oro, 60 

Palazzo Contarini Fasan, 266 

Palazzo Bembo, 256 

Palazzo Doria, 247 

Palazzo Dona, 249 

Palazzo da Mosto, 255 

Palazzo Farsetti, 77, 257 

Palazzo Loredan, 77, 256 

Palazzo Priuli, 251 



Palazzo Vendramin-Calergi, 253 
Palladio, churches by, 96, 159, 

168 
Palma Vecchio, 126, 144, 153, 

190, 196, 199 
Palma, the younger, 237, 239, 

240 
Pantaleone, San, church of, 104 
Paradiso, Tintoretto's, 235 ; 

Vivarini's, 104 ; Torcello, 275 
Patriarchal Throne, 62 
Patriarchal Palace, 25 ; chair, 

168 
Patron Saints, 9 
Pavement, mosaic, 41, 273, 

278 
Pepin, King, 4 
Peter, Saint, 32, 39, 56, 63, 64; 

chapel of, 65 
Pesaro family, ill, 114 
Piazza and Piazzetta, 90 
Pieta, church of the, 152 
Pietro Mar tire San, church of, 

280 
Piombo, Sebast. del, 124, 220 
Plague-saints, the, 10, 95, 97, 

100, 122, 164, 184, 187 
Plan of St. Mark's, mosaics, 

37 
Plan of St. Mark's, chapels, etc , 

40 
Porta della Carta, 85 
Pordenone, 115, 153, 200, 202 
Presentation, the, Titian's 221 
Presbytery of St.' Mark's, 58 
Procuratie Nuove, 93 
Procuratie Vecchie, 90 
Pulpits, St. Mark's, 56, 57 ; 

Torcello, 273 

Quirizio da Murano, 180, 264 

Redentore, church of the, 162 
Reliefs, 21, 28, 29, 48, 52 

57 
Renaissance period, 7 
Renaissance, Venice, 90 to 94 
Rialto, 3, 250, 256 
Rivo Alto, 3, 78 
Rizzo, Antonio, 88, 90, 109 
Rocco, San (St. Roch), 116 



INDEX 



295 



Rocco, San, church of, 97, 121 
Rocco, Scuola di San, 116 
Romanesque architecture, 270, j 

278 
Romanesque sculpture, 23, 26, 

48, 262 
Rood-loft, 58 
Royal Palace, 93 

Sacristy of St. Mark's, 74 
Saints, patron, 9 
Salvatore, San, church of, 123 
Salute, the church of Sta. Maria \ 

della, 95 
Sansovino, 58, 88, 91, 101, 124, i 

147 
Santa Conversazione, 125, 190, j 

196, 217 
Sarcophagus, Christian, 35 
Scala dei Giganti, 88, 224 
Scala d'Oro, 224 
Scala, Minella, 267 
Screens, 272 
Sculpture, antique, 243 
Sculpture on Doge's Palace, 80, j 

82, 85 
Sculpture on St. Mark's, 20, 21, 

25, 26, 27, 28 
Scuola della Carita, 173, 174 
Scuola di S. Gio. Evang., 115, j 

203 
Scuola di San Marco, 90, 129, 

130 
Scuola di San Rocco, 116 
Scuola di Sant' Ursula, 209 
Sebastian, Saint, 97, 100, 102, 

119 
Sebastiano, San, church of, 100 
Sebastiano del Piombo, 124, 

220 
Simone da Cusighe, 178, 179 
Simeone Grande, San, 252 
Sketches, 186 
Solomon, Judgment of, 84 
Spoils, Venetian, 6 
Stephen, St., 159, 160, 161 
Supper, the Last, 99, 126 
Symbolical sculptures, 23, 24, 

25, 29, 52, 57, 263 

Tapestries, 265, 279 



Tarasio, Cappella di San, 144 
Testaments, Old and New. 

mosaics of, 29, 40 
Theodore, St., 10, II, 77 
Throne, episcopal, 75 ; the 

"prepared," 274 
Tiepolo, tomb of Doge, 131 
Tiepolo, painter, 134 
Tintoretto, Jacopo, 98, 99, 103, 

117, 118, 119, 120, 154, 155, 

160, 161, 183, 192, 193, 225, 

226, 228, 231 
Titian, 97, 98, 101, 114, 122, 

123, 124, 153, 158, 181, 199 
Toma, San, church of, 113 
Tombs of Doges, 105, 107, 108 

132 
Torcello, origin of, 2, 9, 269 to 

277 

Trades, the, 24 

Treasury of St. Mark's, 75 ; of 

San Rocco, 121 
Tree of Jesse, 71 
Trovaso, San, church of, 99 
Tryphonius, Saint, 149 

Ursula, Saint, 207 to 213 

Vendramin, tomb of Doge, 136 

Venetian art, 169 

Veneziani, the, 176, 177, 264, 

265 
Venice, origin of name, 1 ; 

personified, 84, 85, 97, 226, 

228, 230, 239 
Veronese, Paolo, 100, 101, 102, 

157, 182, 184, 191, 194, 227, 

228, 234 
Verrocchio, 104, 129 
Virgin, legend of the, 51, 59, 70 
Virtues, the, 24, 27, 28- 50, 67, 

81, 109, 234 
Vitale, San, church of, 259 
Vittoria, Alessandro, 9i s 101, 

107, 126, 138, 142, 191, 194 
Vivarini, the, 104, 113, 127, 

134, 145, 152, 163, 170, 213, 

220, 222 

Wagner, house of, 254 
Well-heads, 88, 263, 277 



296 

Winged lion, the, 9, 19, 77 



INDEX 



Zaccaria, San, church of, 90, 
142 



Zecca, the, 92 
Zen, Cappella, 48 to 50 
Zen, tomb of Cardinal, 50 
Zodiac, signs of, 23, 83 



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